


It (should've) Broke Her  (supercorp)

by yourwifejazzy



Category: dansen - Fandom, supercorp - Fandom
Genre: Alexandra Cabot - Freeform, Angst and Drama, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE!!, James is an asshole, Lena Luthor Finds Out Kara Danvers is Supergirl, Minor Original Character(s), Multi, Physical Abuse, SuperCorp, Violet Turner - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:48:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 52,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24449119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourwifejazzy/pseuds/yourwifejazzy
Summary: (This is not a FF for fans of James Olsen)Disclaimer:I do not own Supergirl or its characters all credits go to the creators of the show Supergirl CWIm sorry if anything seems OOC :(
Relationships: Alex Danvers/Kelly Olsen, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, Lena Luthor/James "Jimmy" Olsen
Comments: 198
Kudos: 448





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first ever fanfic :)  
>  feel free to comment corrections and stuff  
> (I know my punctuation is shitty im sorry)

As kara paced back and forth in Lena's office her mind raced as she thought of every possible outcome of what she was about to do. It had been killing her slowly, bringing her closer and closer to her agonizingly painful death. Kara loved her friendship with Lena and cared for her more than anyone else in the world (other than Alex of course). Just the fact that her next actions could ruin their entire friendship is what mainly kept her secret under wraps for such a long time. It's not that she didn't want Lena to know, never that. She told Lena everything, she trusted Lena without a doubt even when others told her not to. But telling people her secret wasn't something she took lightly. In fact, she made Alex and Jonn arrange for their private government lawyers to create an NDA just to ensure its confidentiality.

Lena was constantly being saved by her alter ego on a daily basis due to the constant attacks on Lena’s life. But still, Lena always shrugged off the attempts and held her head high and continued on with her day. Kara knew Lena was brave and was barely phased by these attempts and Kara admired her for it, although she knew Lena probably returned home and nursed her sorrows with a bottle of gin to forget the events. Telling Lena this secret could break her and Kara definitely didn't want to be the one to do that to Lena. “Kara…?” Kara continued to pace absorbed in her own racing thoughts. “Kara!?” 

Kara adjusted her glasses for the millionth time and ripped her gaze from the floor to be caught in Lena's beautiful green orbs. They shined in a way that only happened when Kara was around or when Lena was genuinely excited about something and it made Kara swoon. But Lena's eyes showed something else as well, worry and concern. Then kara softened from her tense stance in the Middle of Lena's pristine glass office and came to a strikingly obvious realization. She had made Lena worry, Lena was concerned… about Kara. 

“I'm sorry” kara spat out immediately  
“You have nothing to apologize for darling,” Lena said brushing off Kara’s outburst of an apology as she sat down on the small leather sofa placed in her office. She patted the spot next to her signaling for kara to sit down. So kara placed herself softly next Lena.  
“Well, I did come into your office unannounced and just paced back and forth for about five minutes probably wearing a hole in your expensive flooring.”  
“Kara It-” Lenas attempt to reassure kara that although her presence was unexpected it was not a problem at all. Lena always had time for kara and if she didn't, she’d make time. But kara wasn't having it.  
“No no truly Lena I apologize, I know you're a very busy woman and it's hard to make time in your busy schedule so dropping by here unannounced was kinda rude sorry about that and again for the pacing.” Kara continued to ramble out apologies in an attempt to deflect from her current conflict. “You know what, I'll just come back later I'm sorry Lena” but when Kara tried to escape she was stopped by a firm but soft grasp on her hand.  
“Kara it's fine I promise, I always have time for you and I gave you full access to my office for a reason silly, now sit down and tell me what's wrong” The concern that could be easily identified in Lena's eyes was now laced in her voice. 

Kara knew this wasn't a request, Lena would not let her leave her office until she told her what was wrong. So as Lena led her back to the couch where they both sat down, Kara drew in a deep breath.  
“Lena before I tell you what about to tell you I just wanted you to know that I would never intentionally lie to you if it weren't in your best interest- or um if I were trying to protect you I mean”  
“Kara-” Lena began but Kara quickly cut her off  
“ I want you to know that I love and cherish our friendship more than anything else in the world. There is no line I wouldn't cross to keep you safe. I love you”  
“Kara what are yo-?”  
“IM SUPERGIRL” the bandaid had finally been ripped off. 

So Kara waited for what seemed like an eternity. For anything that could tell her Lena felt without having to look at her face. After what was the longest wait in Kara's life she gave in. The silence and not being able to know the fate of her most cherished friendship was crushing her with uncertainty. So slowly but surely her eyes began to open. In front of her sat a stunned Lena staring back at her. And it was right then that Kara internally panicked. Every terrible scenario of losing Lena flashed in her brain. would Lena resent her for keeping her identity a secret for their whole friendship? Would she build her walls back up again and shut her out? Or worse, would she leave altogether? These scenarios played on a continuous loop in Kara's head whenever the thought of exposing her identity to Lena crossed her mind (which happened to be oh so very often). No amount of Kryptonite poisoning, Deo training or soothing advice from Alex could prepare Kara to lose her one and only best friend. 

But instead what Lena said next caught Kara off guard (Like way off guard). “I know Kara” The blonde practically choked at those words. She could've sworn her lungs stopped working (not that it mattered). Her eyes widened as she tore her gaze away from her fidgeting hands in her lap. only to be met with Lena's eyes staring back at her and a small smile playing on her lips tainted with the darkest shade of red Kara had ever seen. Lena eased closer to Kara and put her hands on each side of her cheeks and stared straight into the sea that was Kara's bright blue eyes. Her hands soft and smooth only drew more tears that were threatening to spill from Kara's eyes. Lena and Kara were too close for it to be platonically intimate but they were both too wrapped up in the mass of emotions to notice or care. 

Lena released the soft grasp on Kara's face and they wrapped each other in a bone-crushing hug. And they sat there in the embrace for what was too many seconds to be considered friendly (but again they didn't care). Hugging was not something Lena enjoyed, in fact, Lena limited physical contact to firm handshakes and nothing more. But with kara, she was never bothered by the air draining hugs the bubbling blonde often gave her. “Ok first off I have many questions,” Kara said, finally breaking the comfortable silence they were in and breaking the hug which earned her a soft chuckle from Lena. So Lena began to explain how it was obvious from the start with the “Flew here on a bus” and the Cadmus incident to which Kara blushed in embarrassment. Also, she is the owner of a multi-billion dollar tech company and many more, along with the many PHDs and degrees she had in subjects most couldn't even pronounce. Lena was basically CORRECTION Lena is a genius how could she not have known. Kara mentally face palmed herself many many times. All was good, they were still good, Kara thought with a sigh of relief.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James is an asshole but i wont keep him around for to long i hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im trying my best to make this an angsty slowburn so bare with me. And yes my punctuation is still shitty im sorry.
> 
> (Thank u for the kudos)
> 
> Also tell me if you want longer chapters cus i kinda wanna make them longer cus they seem kinda short and i hate that

(!!TW: implied physical abuse!!)

After the big reveal of Kara’s Identity, Both women recollected themselves and decided to go out to eat lunch at noonans after Lena graciously cleared her schedule. Kara and Lena often ate lunch together. Even on a bad day they always made it an unspoken rule to make time for each other at lunch. Just the essence of being in Kara's presence boosted Lena’s spirits.

A day that could have been ruined by moody investors who tried to gain the upper hand, or the Misogynistic men who just happened to be part of her company's board was all a distant memory when Lena had Lunch With Kara. And it was the same for Kara. her days were often clouded by Snapper undermining her abilities, or James with his large ego and fragile masculinity parading around the office. They enjoyed their time together and being in the presence of each other

But it being Lena's presence also made it exceedingly difficult for Kara to keep her feelings under wraps. It had been a couple of months after her talk with Alex that shed light on her true feelings for Lena

“...She's so smart Alex did you know the project she's working on to ultimately get rid of the plastic waste in the ocean is working! And she's raised millions of dollars to help fund social movements and not to mention her hospital? The way she can get shot at and brush it off without a falter in her step…” Kara continued the speech of her admiration towards Lena. 

“She’s just so amazing Alex ugh” kara breathed out 

“All I did was ask about your lunch with Lena” Alex groaned with “You could write a whole book with everything you just told me, just tell the woman you love her already so I don't have to hear you gush about your crush anymore” 

“Wha-? I don't have a crush on Lena, and plus she's dating James” Kara protested and began fidgeting with her glasses.

“Oh please, with you two in a room together, you could cut the sexual tension with a knife. And constantly throwing heart eyes at each other, who do you think you're fooling?” 

“Well… ok…. So maybe I do have a crush on her, it's not like she could ever like me back. She’s Lena and I'm just Kara” Lena was amazing in so many ways. And although Kara was supergirl in her mind she was still regular old kara.

Alex's face softened as she processed her sister's response. “ kara you are amazing, not only because of your supergirl but because you're you. You take the worst situations and use that scary amount of optimism you have and suddenly things don't seem so bad. You light up a room as soon as you walk in, so i'll be damned if anyone wouldn't like you. And plus Lena DEFINITELY likes you back she practically undresses you with her ey-“

“OK OK, thank you Alex” Kara stopped Alex before she said some things she didn't want to hear from her sister of all people. 

“And keep talking down to yourself, and i'll have to whoop your ass during training again.” Alex returned smugly

So today when Kara was sitting across from Lena as they waited for their server to return with their food, kara could help but take in the sight before her. The Navy green shirt flowed on Lena's frame and the neckline drooped low enough to let Kara's mind wonder what was held beneath the barrier of fabric. The black skirt accentuated her curves that made Kara's knees weak. Lena in general was the overall definition of beauty herself. Her sharp jawline and soft green eyes could make any man who dared to challenge her fall to their knees but also caused butterflies in kara's stomach

“Is there something on my face? If you let me walk in here with lipstick on my face ill have to rethink your position on being my best friend” Lena chuckled and kara finally snapped out of Lenas spell

“Oh god no there's nothing on your face it's just that…. well your-“ Karas face flushed bright red and as she began spewing out a stammered response

“I'm what?” Lena questioned with the raise of her perfectly crafted eyebrow 

“Well your just really pretty, like beautiful Lena really”

“Oh, well thank you kara. You're not so bad yourself” Lena added a small wink 

“Well, i- oh…” If Kara's face was red before, she may just have invented a new shade. Lena Luthor was going to be the death of her. But sure enough, their server arrived with their food saving kara from her futile attempt to hide her attraction to Lena.

Of course, kara being kara she ordered all the potstickers she could get in one meal while Lena took the healthy initiative of getting her kale salad with small cubes of chicken. Kara basically gagged at Lenas order 

“ Not everyone can eat the way you do and maintain a healthy lifestyle kara” Lena teased

“Well even if I wasn't who I was, I would never submit my body or tastebuds to the torture that is eating and digesting kale. Honestly Lena I don't know how you do it.” 

“over-exaggerate much? It's not that bad, here try some” Lena stabbed her fork into her salad and held it towards karas face 

“Well if you're going to kill me, at least make it somewhat less painful by adding the chicken on it, I am your best friend after all” Kara jokes. Lena rolled her eyes and stabbed her fork into her salad again adding one singular chicken cube to the prong of the fork. Kara swallowed, the things Lena did to her. DESPICABLE, she was even trying kale for her. KALE. 

Kara leaned forward slightly trapping Lena's fork between her lips and began to chew. Then it was like a wave of disgust engulfed her whole body. Kara's face twisted into a form that easily showed her disgust. And of course, Lena thought this was the funniest thing ever and was trying (and failing) to bite back the howl of laughter in her throat. 

But before Kara could even voice her distaste for the horror Lena just put her through, a furious looking James burst through the doors of the restaurant. When his eyes finally landed on Lena and Kara they narrowed. He took large steps of furry to their table in the far corner of Noonans. When Lena saw James coming toward them, her face flushed and she froze.

“Where have you been?” James said through gritted teeth, completely ignoring Kara's presence.

“I cleared my schedule for the rest of the day,” Lena said barely above a whisper.

“And you didn't think to tell me, And what have I said about going out dressed like that?” Said James as he eyed her outfit.

“ well I am a grown woman, I do as I please” Lena shot back.

“What did you- let's go” 

“I'm having lunch with my friend James, you're being rude” She whispered 

“I SAID LET'S GO” Kara saw Lena tremble and flinch at the assertive tone of James' voice.

Lena scurried quickly and collected her things and held her head down as James pulled her to the back door of the restaurant by her wrist. She had never seen Lena like this before. It worried Kara and it was all she could think about for the rest of the day. How she had just sat there and let it all happen. The fear in Lena's eyes, like she feared the consequences of her actions. 

Kara would be damned if anyone EVER made Lena feel or look that way. The person involved wouldn't see the light of day. That person happened to be James.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James you've done a very bad thing 
> 
> this is all Lena's POV (Karas will come next)
> 
> also thank you for all the comments i love them so keep them coming :) (good and bad, ranting is welcomed)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is... well read it  
> i had a lot of time on my hands so i'm spilling out chapters  
> so your welcome 2 in one day :)
> 
> \---------------------------------------------------------------------  
> I mostly wrote this chapter to bring awareness to domestic abuse and the psychological toll it takes on its victims, especially those like Lena. Especially because of COVID many women are in these same types of situations. So please if you know anyone or you yourself is in this in this type situation you can get help. 
> 
> DOMESTIC ABUSE HOTLINE:  
> Call: 1-800-799-7233  
> Text "LOVEIS": 1-866-331-9474
> 
> please stay safe 
> 
> love u ;)  
> (yes yes i do)  
> \---------------------------------------------

(!!TW: PHYSICAL ABUSE? DOMESTIC VIOLENCE!!)

The car ride was quiet and tense. Lena was scared, so scared. Lena had broken many rules today. Talking back, her unapproved outfit, changing of plans without telling him, and going out without him and his permission. It had started to rain and the sound of each singular raindrop protruding from the sky pounding on the roof of the car. For the whole ride, Lena's internal voices that tormented her played loudly in her head. 

“Why do you always do this Lena? This is why nobody can love you. Now look what you've done, the one person who wants to love you thinks your a burden” 

Lena silently tried to shake off the thoughts screaming in her head

“No no, if I apologize he’ll forgive me. He loves me, he won't be mad. He just wants to protect me, he won't leave” 

Her thoughts were interrupted as James’s Lexus pulled into the private garage of Lena's penthouse. The garage door Lifted and James had still said nothing. It would be something if Lena could tell how angry he was then she would know what to do to make it better. But he was quiet and his face was emotionless, It was killing her and sending her mind into a frenzy of concern. They exited the car, no words escaped their lips. For Lena, it was out of fear of saying the wrong thing and making everything worse. For James, it was out of anger and frustration that Lena would even dare to disobey him. They entered the private elevator and Lena made her first mistake. 

“Baby, I'm sorry I didn't mean to. I was having a hectic day and it slipped my mind. Baby, I didn't mean to you know that, right? I'm sorry baby real-” 

An icy cold slap hit Lena's right cheek and she winced as she reached up to cradle the area of her cheek. Her face burned and her eyes stung with tears that threatened to spill. 

“ i- I'm sorry” 

“Shut up bitch, nobody will ever love you like I will. It seems like you take that for granted, constantly misbehaving. Dressing like a slut and disobeying me. I have been very patient with you, but today is the last day. Today you will learn.”

Lena could do nothing but silently sob, and wait for her fate. The elevator bell notified them of their arrival at Lena's floor. She went through her retina and fingerprint scan and stepped through her door. 

“Lemme help you with your coat”

Lena reached up to help remove James’ coat and slid it off him slowly and carefully. As soon as the shoes and coats were off, Lena did the first thing that came to mind. Make. It. Better. Just do anything, just do something. 

“Are you hungry babe?” 

“Get me some pasta and a cup and some gin, and be quick about it ” 

Her body tensed at the mention of alcohol. Alcohol, alcohol was not good. This would only make things worse. After one sip hell would be unleashed. Drunk James was not good in any circumstances, and Lena knew it all too well. If he had slapped her sober, who knows what he would do intoxicated. Lena was scared before but now she was terror-stricken she trembled each step of the way into the kitchen. She put the tray into the oven and set the timer, then she was face to face with her fate. Her glass alcohol pantry showed her the broken reflection of who she had become. Her face painted with tears and the light red imprint of James's hand tainted her pale cheek. She had two options, Bring James’s request and take what was coming to her. Or take the option of bringing him juice and lower the risk of a violent and intoxicated James. So she took the risk.

Maybe he wouldn't be mad  
Maybe they would kiss and makeup, couples fight  
Maybe she could make it better  
Maybe tomorrow would be better  
Maybe, maybe, maybe,

The oven timer shook Lena out of her stupor, she quickly shuffled to the oven and removed the pasta from the oven and plated it on a blue ceramic plate. She retrieved a singular glass cup that was mainly used for alcohol and filled it with sparkling water. No, this was too tricky. Surely James would notice, then what would she do? But it was too late, another minute of delay and he would come into the kitchen and investigate. So she placed a smile on her face and went to deliver his meal. She placed the plate and cup of her alcohol substitute and on the glass table of her living room and sat down on the chair perpendicular to him. 

“Well at least you can do one thing right” He loudly mumbled  
He took a few bites of the pasta and Lena’s heart began to beat out of her chest. What was she thinking? And it was those few seconds in between lifting the cup to his mouth her heart skipped beats. Her fight or flight mode was activated once she saw him swallow.

“You stupid bitch” 

“ Baby my love, you know how you get when you drink-” A hard slap came to Lena's face. Then she felt herself topple to the floor, the soft fabric of the chair cushioning her body as she laid there. Defenseless. Then she felt his hard rough hands snake around her throat and pull her upwards to her feet. The back of her head was met with the stiff cold wall of her living room. Picture frames shattered to the ground. The back of her leg filled with pain after hitting it on the corner of the small table which held a lamp. The shattered pieces of the glass lamp lay lifeless on the floor.

“YOU think you know what's best for me, again, and again you defy me. Why Lena do you not love me? 

“No, James sweetie you know that I d-” Lena gasped out her words and with James’ hand still wrapped tightly around her throat 

“ you go out dressed as a slut knowing the way people look at you, You clear your schedule to whore around with other men. You beg for their attention. Nobody will love you like I can, Nobody will love you like I will. Nobody will love you. Nobody, And I think its time you remember that.” 

As Lena continued to grasp onto the last bit of air her lungs his words replayed in her head 

“Nobody will love you” 

But then another voice played in her head, one much softer and kinder than one she had ever known. The voice of the one person who believed in her when the whole world had tried to tear her down. The one person who had protected her time and time again. The one person who could say wholeheartedly would be there whenever she needed her, regardless of anything else. Someone who loved her no matter what. Kara.

“There is no line I wouldn't cross to keep you safe. I love you” 

Lena's mind shot back to the conversation she'd had with Kara just this morning. Kara trusted her with her most important secret. Maybe the most important secret in the world. Kara cared and Kara loved her. So with her last gasp of air, Lena said the name of the last person corrected the only person who loved her. The only person she wanted to love her 

“Kara” she rasped barely above a whisper 

Then she slowly faded into a realm of darkness.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I mostly wrote this chapter to bring awareness to domestic abuse and the psychological toll it takes on its victims, especially those like Lena. Especially because of COVID many women are in these same types of situations. So please if you know anyone or you yourself is in this in this type situation you can get help. 

DOMESTIC ABUSE HOTLINE:  
Call: 1-800-799-7233  
Text "LOVEIS": 1-866-331-9474

please stay safe 

love u ;)  
(yes yes i do)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ok listen, yall are gonna hate me for this chapter ... but I promise it will all come soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love all the comments keep them coming :)
> 
> and yes ranting is still welcome

(!!TW: mentions of abuse!!)

The events of today's lunch with Lena had been playing in Kara's head all day. The terror in her face when she saw James. The way she had gone stiff and pale after she spoke like she dared to say something back to him. The way she left abruptly on his command. Something wasn't right. She had never seen Lena of all people behaved that way, and it worried her. No, it scared her. 

She couldn't focus after Lena had left. She had just sat there, she could have at least said something. But no kara just sat there. And what scared her even more, was the consequence that lay in James’ words. 

_ “What have I said about going dressed like that? _

_ “You didn't think to tell me?” _

The Lena she knew would have put James in his place. She would never let him have spoken to her Like that. She would let him know that she did what she wanted when she wanted and would not explain herself and her actions to anyone. Not even a man nonetheless. But the Lena she knew had vanished in those few seconds of laying her eyes on James. Replaced by a small child who feared the consequences of her actions. What had he done to her? Who was he to tell her how she should or could dress? Who was he to interrupt Lena’s personal time with kara? Who was he to speak Lena as he owned her? 

After she got back to Cat Co she tried to focus on the task at hand. The article of her saving the kids from getting hit by a bus, but it kept replaying in her mind. The fear in Lena's eyes, like a child who had broken a rule or disobeyed their parents. 

Finally, she gave up on the article. She had to go somewhere, do something to help her racing mind. She went into the bathroom and locked the door. She waited and she listened, trying to tune her super hearing to track Lena's voice, her heartbeat, anything. But still, there was nothing. No, No, NO! From then on Kara could only start imagining the worst. 

_ “No kara, she's fine”  _ she tried to convince herself, but it wasn't working

Then she heard it, it was so soft and fragile that if she hadn't been listening so intently she would have missed it.

“Kara,” It shocked her, it was said with such emotion and depth. 

Kara released a gasp of air trapped within her lungs. 

“She's probably just in her super secure lead-lined office, she's ok she can handle herself.”

“She's ok, stop worrying, she's ok”

But it just wasn't sitting right. Lena had not texted or called Kara after she had left, and it had been at least 2-3 hours ago. Kara and Lena talked constantly, whenever they could. So this was a red flag.

Kara exited the bathroom promptly and began collecting her stuff, Ignoring everyone and everything. And began her route to the elevator. As she entered she waited impatiently for it to reach the ground leveled floor. Then another button on the panel lit up, she would have to stop on the next floor. 

“Why fly when you can take the elevator?” Kara mumbled to herself, meeting her face with her palm. Sometimes she just didn't think. 

As the elevator descended to the floor below her she began fidgeting impatiently with her bracelet. When the doors finally opened to collect new passengers there was only one person. When her eyes laid upon his face and his shiny bald head, she began to see red. Kara had not processed just how angry she was, it took everything in her not to beat his face in right then and there. The devil reincarnated James himself, but of course, with his smug arrogance, he smiled at her. That stupid  _ what are you gonna do?  _ smile. 

Clenching her jaw tightly she only glared at him as he stepped into the elevator. She didn't say anything to him, not wanting to spew out the despisal she has for him right then and there. He stood behind her and leaned onto the back of the elevator wall. 

“Done already?” 

A small chuckle came from behind her. shocking Kara, whipping her head around a little too quickly. Of course, he was bold enough to say something. 

”Yea” she lied but did it matter?

“Oh could you do me a favor and check up on Lena for me, she seemed a little  _ shaken up  _ after lunch” 

“ _ Your _ Lena's  _ boyfriend  _ wouldn't you do that yourself if you actually cared?” she spat out her words through gritted teeth. Kara was already ahead of herself, she was probably going to say every word of hatred to this man. It didn't matter to Kara, her only worry as of right now was Lena. 

“ I care for Lena, but sometimes she can be so… difficult “ James paused and his voice changed 

“I love her and she takes it all for granted, if she just did as she was told things would be a lot easier” 

Now James had made another mistake, he had said the wrong things at the wrong time about the wrong person while kara was in the right mood. She hit the emergency stop button and turned her whole body to face James. She stepped towards him, eyes glowing with rage. How dare he speak about Lena that way. Her Lena. 

“You are the most selfish, egotistical, inconsiderate, despicable man. It's not that Lena doesn’t deserve you, you don't deserve Lena. Oh please, you don't love her and you don't want to, you just want control of one of the most powerful women on this planet. To make your fragile little ego feel better. Lena deserves someone who loves her and that isn't you, and I will move the moon and stars to make sure she sees that” she was going to kill him, right then and there. No regrets.

“Oh, and who do you think that might be YOU?” James laughed at the idea of Lena actually being in any way interested and kara in a romantic way. 

“She would never and could never love you. Lena is just a lost puppy looking for a home, she'll run to whoever will give her an ounce of affection and you know it. She needed to learn her lesson. I was the only one who loved her, and I was the only one who ever will” 

That was it. 

Kara lifted him against the wall meeting him eye to eye. Wrapping his tie in her hand she tugged tightly and made sure they maintained eye contact. 

“You're going to regret everything you just said and everything you’ve ever done to Lena. I have many friends in high places that have access to many high tech weapons that would gladly bury your body without batting an eyelash. I promise you that if I find out you touched Lena I will make sure that you will never have the pleasure of existing within the realm of Lena’s thoughts again. You will only be a forgotten memory on a tombstone that nobody will visit. Mark my words I will find you, and I will kill you” Karas’s eyes glowed a brighter shade of red than ever before, Kara never threatened to kill even the worst of criminals. But for Lena, James was an easy exception.

She was so close, so close to unleashing hell on this man, but the bell dung announcing that Kara had reached the ground level. He had no idea how lucky he was to be able to still be breathing. Kara quickly composed herself and left the elevator, leaving a gasping James behind. 

“There's only so many ways I could end you without breaking a sweat, remember that James” 

Kara exited the cat building and ducked into an alley. Quickly she took off her glasses, almost breaking them in the pursuit. She flew as fast as she could almost breaking the sound barrier to get to L-Corp. When she arrived at Lenas' balcony, she found it empty and deserted. Then in walked a startled Jess.

“Um, hello supergirl is there something I can help you with?” 

“Has Ms.Luthor returned to her office since her lunch with Ms.Danvers this afternoon?”

“Yes just to pick up some of her things but she left with Mr.Olsen” 

“ Would you happen to know where they went?” 

“Um, yes I think Ms.Luthor returned to her home this evening, I could give you the address if you’d like”

“No that’s not necessary thank you”

Kara sped off towards Lena’s penthouse and placed her feet softly on her balcony. She x-rayed the area and the sight nearly made her collapse. Lena, she lay limp on the floor glass splayed out around her. Her clothes torn and ripped while bruises covering her body. He had really done it, at first she wanted to say it wasn’t so. As Lena’s bruised body lay there Lena filled with not only towering rage but pain and anguish. 

She kicked into the glass doors leading into Lena’s penthouse. She didn’t care about the damage, she didn’t care about the mess. Her only focus was on Lena. when she finally stepped into Lena's pristine home she processed the sight before her. The glass lay broken all around the living room, a singular white chair along with a table that had once held a lamp overturned. Then finally Lena, Kara's breath caught in her throat. Zooming over to lean she leaned down to place her head on her chest. Lena's breathing was so shallow and her heartbeat so faint no wonder Kara wasn't able to hear her. 

Then her eyes raked Lena's body, and her heart shattered. Her wrist and neck had reddened bruises that decorated her skin. Lena's face had the light imprints of a hand covered by a trail of dried tears. Kara scooped Lena so carefully as not to break her, she felt as though the lightest movement and Lena would crumble in her grasp. She held Lena close and tapped into her comm connecting her to the D.E.O and lifted them off the Lenas glass-covered balcony. 

“Hey, kara what's up?”

“Alex needs you to prepare a bed in the D.E.O” 

“ Ok, what happened for who”

“It's for Lena, I'll let you know more when I get there” 

Kara touched down at the D.E.O and sure enough, Alex was waiting there with a medical bed and supplies. She placed her gently on the bed, pushing Lena's hair out of her face. She placed a soft kiss on her forehead. 

“Take care of her for me please Alex I have to go”

“But Kar-” Alex tried to protest, maybe stop her from doing whatever she planned. Kara was having none of it, her mind was set.

“Please Alex I'll be back, I promise just- just don't let her die please” Kara's eyes burned as they filled with salty tears. 

She sped off into the sky and floated in the air listening for the sound of his wretched voice. Sure enough, she tracked it to a nightclub in the hub of National City. How could he go out clubbing when his girlfriend was laying so close to death. 

Today would be the last day. 

The last day James did something like this 

The day he would take his last breath 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The long-awaited chapter (or at least I think it is)  
> this is taking place after chapter four in Karas pov after she dropped Lena off at the DEO (Sorry if the flow is confusing) and chapter five was taking place shortly before this chapter. If that's confusing I hope the next chapter will clear things up. I think i will start Labelling each chapter with the characters pov and see it will help :)
> 
> I'm sorry again this took so long to get to you. I tried the best with the time I had

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter didn't do yall justice. I know everyone was waiting for the Kara vs James chapter and if it's really shitty (please don't spare my feelings and tell me if it is) I will take criticism and re-write it for yall if that's what u want. I've been reading my comments and taking feedback. also please help me come up with a new title bcus wtf was I thinking given the storyline. 
> 
> i really almost had a breakdown because I felt like this whole ff was so shitty but.....
> 
> I changed the way this chapter was written after a comment about the sensitivity of the chapter given the topic of George Floyd's murder. 
> 
> I hope you all are doing well :) 
> 
> and again please comment thoughts, criticism or just anything honestly <3 its always welcome

He hurt Lena.  _ My Lena _

That was all Kara could think about as she hovered in the air. 

He. Hurt. Lena.  _ Her Lena _

But then again Lena wasn't her Lena. She couldn't hold her hand and go on silly dates with her. She couldn't kiss her when she wanted to (and oh did she want). She couldn't envision a life with her as she stared into the green eyes that softened whenever she laughed. Only Kara made her laugh. She couldn't do those things because Lena wasn't her Lena. But it didn't matter because as long as Lena was still a passing thought in her head, Kara would move heaven and earth to keep her happy and safe. Whether or not she was her Lena. 

Kara waited patiently above the nightclub for James to show his face. All this time hoping and praying to great Rao to make sure Lena was ok. She needed to be with her, to hold her and make sure she was ok. But she needed to do this first, seeing Lena in her condition would only infuriate Kara more. So this would have to be taken care of first. 

Finally, James exited the night club with two women attached to his hips. Walking them back over to the almost empty parking lot so late at night. Kara slowly descended to the ground in front of his Kara. Both women in short skin tight dresses watched kara with wide eyes. James only smiled his slyly polite smile which made Kara want to bash his face in. 

“Supergirl what brings you here?” 

“You two leave” Kara's voice was stiff and unwavering ignoring James’ question.

Both women were stunned and the assertiveness in the heroine's voice and had yet to move. Much to Kara's annoyance they didn't leave and stood there. She needed to finish this quickly and get back to Lena. 

“NOW!” Kara commanded 

Both women jumped and scattered. Apparently, James thought he would be walking away as well. He attempted to hurry into his car attempting to escape her wrath. Kara took a slow step towards James and remained eye contact, her blue orbs narrowing in on his face. 

“ Why is it that you’re the way that you are Mr.Olsen?” 

“Excuse me?” 

Kara took another slow step getting closer to James sizing him up. 

“Does it make you feel good about yourself to make people feel so small and vulnerable stripping them of all power and sense of dignity” 

“Wha-”

“Is that why you did what you did to Ms.Luthor? 

“She did that to herself” he grumbled.

Know Kara had been very patient with James. The fact that he was still standing and breathing while Lena lay on the medical bed in pain while being barely was considerably generous to Karas's standards. Still after all he's said and done and who knows what else, here he is without even an ounce of guilt or even sympathy for Lena. How had she sat idle and let him treat her that way? Although all of Kara's irate and undeniable hate was aimed at James she was also angry with herself. How had she not seen it, stopped it, prevented it? How could she not have protected Lena? 

“Can you fly Mr.Olsen?” Kara asked, her voice still stiff and emotionless 

“Can I wha-?”

Before He could even finish his sentence James found himself dangling in the air at the hands of a red-eyed supergirl. 

Kara's veins were now glowing a faint hue of red. Almost as though she was under the influence of red kryptonite. But this was only caused by the anger and fury towards James and herself as well. 

“How does it feel so powerless, to be in the hands of the person separating you between life and death?”

Kara began to let James' hand slip out of her grasp ever so slowly. With each slight movement, he shrieked with fear. 

“ You were supposed to love and protect her James, but instead you broke her and shattered her into pieces. You go out to a strip club while  _ your  _ girlfriend lay almost lifeless on the floor. So tell me, why is it I should let you live?”

“I didn't- please don't kill me” He begged 

“A REASON JAMES, I ASKED FOR A REASON! As of right now, your odds are stacked against you, I could simply let you slip out of my hand and meet your fate” and with that she let his hand slip out of hers slightly. 

Blinded by distraught and disappointment Kara had no regard for James’ life. If she wasn't in her current state she would have been appalled and ashamed of her current abuse of power. She was meant to save and protect, yet here she was threatening someone's life. James was also meant to help and protect, and he abused  _ his  _ power. So did it really matter?

Then the beeping of the comm in her ear shook her out of her inner dispute. 

“Supergirl I know you're upset right now, but I need you to bring James down and come to the DEO ok?”

Upset? No, kara being  _ upset  _ was an understatement

“He hurt her Alex, he broke her again and who knows how many times and it was right in front of me and I did nothing Alex NOTHING!” Kara screamed through the fountain of tears pouring from her eyes.

“I know Kara but I need you to understand that it wasn't your fault and- you can't always know the right thing to do all the time.” Alex’s tone changed and began talking to Kara from a sisterly standpoint, it was what she needed right now.

“But I coul- I should have done something Alex”

“Kara please just come back, you don't want to do this. I understand your hurt and angry with yourself but this isn't the right thing to do, this won't help you or Lena, so please just come back” Alex’s voice began to shake 

Kara paused, Alex was right this wasn't going to help anyone. It wouldn't take her guilt or Lena’s pain. She looked down at a fear-stricken James and her eyes softened (Only a little). What was she doing? Kara drew in a large shaky breath and attempted to call herself. If Alex was able to communicate with her, she was no longer operating. She was no longer operating on Lena. 

That meant one of two things, Lena was dead or Alex was finished. Kara knew Alex was amazing with whatever she did and was sure that she took every measure to keep Lena alive. Now Kara's mind began racing and all sense of calm she had established was now gone and once again replaced with rage and fury.

She needed to know if she was ok. For James’ sake, Lena had to be ok 

“Did she die?” Kara's voice was stern

“Well, she’s um…” Alex froze. 

“Did you save her Alex!?” Kara was growing impatient

“Ye- Yes she's ok” It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the complete truth. It was the best thing to say for both James and Kara’s sake.

Kara let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She could breathe, Lena was ok. 

“Ok, I'm coming” 

Alex sighed out in relief 

“Alright ill see you when you get here, and kara…?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you” 

“I love you too”

Kara looked down at James again and sighed. Unfortunately, he had been spared

*At The DEO*

When Kara finally landed at the DEO (James in hand) Alex rushed over and engulfed Kara in a hug that could have crushed her ribs if she was human. Then she felt a soft punch hit her arm which probably hurt Alex more than it hurt her. 

“Don't you ever do anything like that ever again, do you have any idea how scared I was that my sister had gone rogue?!” Now that Kara was back Alex’s caring sister's personality was replaced with the one of a scolding mother. Kara only looked down at the ground in embarrassment. The almighty supergirl being scolded by her sister, how ironic. 

Alex turned to look at James and her face turned stern and sour. Kara eyed her clenched fist that hung at her sides. Although Lena and Alex were not as close as she was with Kara, the few shared game nights and science projects they worked on proved them to be more alike in ways they had not known. Not only that, but James was also Kelly's brother and Alex could only imagine how Kelly would feel when she found out. Alex took one mighty step forward now face to face with James who was now being cuffed by a DEO agent. 

“I will make sure you never see the outside of a prison cell for as long as you live” 

And with that James was whisked away to a DEO holding cell. 

“Take me to her” 

“Kara I don't think you should-”

“Alex I love you I do and I understand you're trying to protect me and do what's right, but right now I really need to see Lena, please” the eagerness in Kara's voice made Alex’s heart melt. 

With a small nod, Alex hugged Kara once more and started to lead her to the med bay where Lena was. She walked slowly, ultimately worried about the consequences of the lie she had told to kara.  _ It wasn't a lie just not the complete truth _ Alex reminded herself.

When they finally reached the medical unit She paused before opening Lena’s door 

“Ok before you walk in you have to promise not to get mad ok” 

“Alex what are you talk-” Kara began to panic, maybe Lena wasn't  _ actually _ ok 

“You can't get mad Kara now promise me ok”

“Fine” 

As Alex began to open the door Kara prayed silently to Rao and anyone else who was listening that Lena was ok.

Lena had to be ok….


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> finally some Dansen
> 
> enjoy the trash which is this chapter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how to feel about this chapter...
> 
> anyway like always comment stuff and please give me a new title for this story because the one I came up with a 4 am is ass :) I'm basically begging rn 
> 
> anyway many kisses for you all and I hope your all doing well :)

(!!TW: MENTIONS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE/ABUSE/ALCOHOLISM/HOMOPHOBIC SLURS!!)

Lena’s dead 

The end 

I'm very funny huh?

When the door was finally pushed open and Kara was finally able to fully see Lena. Kara’s breath caught in her throat and her eyes began to sting with tears. Lena lay flat on the medical bed dressed in a blue hospital gown. A breathing mask covered her face supplying her with oxygen to help her breathe. Wires with monitors attached to her arm and fingers monitoring her vitals. Lena’s torso was currently being latched onto by black mercy that was currently keeping her subdued. Kara knew the effects of black mercy all too well. After being attacked by it, she was thrown into a state of unconsciousness that trapped her in a fantasy.

Alex had been able to stabilize Lena, but her brain had not been without oxygen for too long. She had to be placed under the black mercy to keep her stable while her brain ultimately repaired itself. The DEO machines and technology were not working well enough to keep her on a ventilator without her coding. Her body was under too much stress to repair itself that way. So far the use of black mercy had been working, Lena’s body was repairing the small parts of her brain that had started to shut down in her time of unconsciousness at her penthouse. Alex had explained this to Kara, giving her some sense of relief. 

“So she’s ok?”

“Yes Kara, she’s going to be ok”

Kara pulled Alex into a bone-crushing hug. Lena was ok, thank Rao (or Alex in this case)

Kara couldn't move from the doorway. Her feet glued to the floor and tears stained her cheek. Alex felt her heart strain seeing her sister in such distraught. Carefully Alex slipped her hand into Kara’s and squeezed it gently. Kara wiped her tears quickly and began to ease her way over to Lena’s bedside. Alex decided it was best to keep her distance and let Kara have her time with Lena.

Kara trapped Lena’s hand into hers and kissed the top of it softly and rubbed her knuckles. She reached over to push her raven hair out of her face. She wanted so badly to remove all of Lena’s pain and tell her it would all be ok. Kara took in the sight that was Lena’s beaten and bruised body up close. All sense of forgiveness she could have had for herself was gone now. Her eyes laid upon Lena's pale white skin that was more visible with her gown on. Red rings around Lena’s wrist and neck and purple and blue bruises on her arms tainted her skin. 

Kara's knees went weak and she fell to the floor. She did this to her. She let that evil son of a bitch hurt Lena. Lena was one of the strongest people she knew, never did she think this could happen to her. Even though Kara had not been the one to physically put Lena in this state, she felt a sense of responsibility for not stopping it. She had simply sat there and let Lena be dragged off and…. Kara didn't even want to think about it. 

“I'm so sorry Lena I should have said something, done something, I cou- I should have stopped it”

Alex went and reached over to Kara pulling her close into her arms.

“It wasn't your fault Kar, you can't always know what to do. You didn't hurt Lena, James did and you can't stop everything and protect everyone from everything even when you want to so badly. You can only do so much to help the people you love. the unexpected can throw you off and put you into positions where you don't know what to do. There is no handbook to deal with domestic violence and there isn't always one right thing to do. All you can do now is be there when she wakes up and help her through whatever she needs. Ok?”

“I should've paid more attention, how couldn't I have seen it?”

“No buts, Lena nor I will let you hold this over yourself. You will be ok, Lena will be ok, and James will be dealt with. You can't focus on what you didn't do, only what you did and how it helped. That’s all that matters right now ”

“Ok…,” Kara sat in Alex’s arms and they stayed there in silence, The soft beeping of the machines played as background music. Kara was always so grateful that Alex was there for her through anything and everything. 

“I- I'm sorry Alex” Kara whispered 

“For what?” 

“I put you in a bad position with Kelly, I was being blindly selfish without realizing”

“It’s ok kar, you were hurting and you did what you thought was right. Kelly and I will be ok” it was more of a question to herself more than a response to Kara. In all honesty, Alex was worried about how Kelly would react. 

A soft knock on the door startled both Kara and Alex.

“Director Danvers, Ms.Olsen is waiting down in the hub for you” 

“Thank you” 

Kara felt Alex waver and hesitate but didn't move from her current position of cradling kara on the floor. 

“You can go, I'll be ok” Kara gave a weak smile

“Are you sure? I can stay for a couple more minutes”

“No Alex, go take care of your girlfriend” 

“Alright, I'm here if you need me” Alex placed a kiss to the top of Kara’s head. 

With that Kara released herself from Alex’s grip and let Alex leave the room.

**

Alex went down the stairs leading to the hub of the DEO and saw a very restless pacing Kelly. She looked like she could bite someone's head off, but she also looked like she could throw up. Alex wanted to tell her everything would be alright, but she didn't even know how Kelly could be feeling right now. Would she resent her for what Kara did/ attempted to do? Did she even know that her sister almost dropped James down into a fully bustling highway? 

Well, Alex was about to find out.

Kelly continued to pace as Alex walked up behind her. She stumbled a bit and looked somewhat dazed. All the pacing was making her dizzy, but she knew if she stopped she would probably break down on the floor.

She didn't know much, one phone call offered to James was used to call her. The call was short and quick, James spewing out profanities about being wrongly imprisoned by idiots with badges. It ended with him telling Kelly to “Get him out before he broke out” which she doubted he could do. So she got into her car ranting out complaints of constantly having to clean up his messes and having just another reason to avoid men. When she arrived at the DEO unable to find Alex her anxiety began to rise. Nobody told her anything and she didn't know anything. Apparently, she was “Unauthorised personnel” so nobody could release any information

So here she was pacing the floor of the DEO imagining the worst. 

Alex on the other hand could see the clear panic written on her girlfriend's face.

“Hey babe come sit down” it would probably be better to have her sitting down given the news she would have to deliver to her. 

“No! Not until someone tells me something, and where the hell is Alex!?” Kelly still had not stopped her pacing with her eyes glued to the floor, irritation and impatience made themselves present in her voice. 

“Hey baby I'm right here, look at me” Kelly finally tore her eyes from the floors of the DEO and faced her girlfriend. Alex offered her a small reassuring smile and pulled her into a tight hug, Kelly's eyes began to fill with tears. 

“I'm sorry I wasn't available and I should've called. I know and I'm sorry but I'm here now ok, and I really need you to sit down” Alex kissed her forehead and held her face in her hands as she wiped Kelly’s tears. Kelly gave a small nod and Alex led them to the DEO conference room for more privacy.

Kelly sat down in one of the chairs and faced Alex who kneeled in front of her as she drew in a deep breath. 

“Ok, so as you know we have James in custody in connection with Lena’s hospitalization” 

“Wait, is Lena ok? What does this have to do with James?”

“You know that I'm not allowed to disclose any information about Lena or her condition?”

“Alex, please stop speaking to me like some patient or something, and tell me what the hell happened!” Kelly snapped at Alex and even flinched at her aggressiveness towards her girlfriend.

“I- Im sorry, I don't mean to yell it's just… I'm stressed and I know little to nothing and I'm confused. I know you're only trying to do your jo-” Kelly began to spill out apologies, but Alex cut her off.

She grabbed her hands and ran her thumbs softly over kelly’s knuckles 

“It’s ok, I understand. I should have done a better job of being here for you. Now I'm going, to be honest with now you because you’re my girlfriend and you need to know the truth” 

Kelly nodded and Alex began to explain.

So She told her

She told her about Lena and what James had done. She told her about what Kara was going to do, and why she didn't call at first. 

Alex held her breath waiting for Kelly to react. As of now, her face showed no sign of emotion, just a blank stare as Alex kneeled in front of her, squeezing her hands. 

“Kelly?” Alex wasn't sure if she could even hear her.

“I should have known” she whispered 

“Hey you couldn't have known, you didn't see it, nobody did, it's not your fault.” Alex tried to console her girlfriend and did her best to make sure she knew that it wasn't anyone's fault (except for James)

“When we were younger in college, James had a girlfriend. They had been dating for about 6 months and as far as I knew they were great. They were almost perfect for each other which was annoying. Over the course of a couple of weeks she became more distant, she would constantly check her phone when they were together. She started to become less affectionate towards him. She would avoid kissing him or holding his hand and whatever else. I brought it up to him, and he dismissed it telling me I was just jealous.”

Alex listened intently as Kelly continued.

“One day she had canceled a date with him and said she had to go out of town to visit her grandparents and would be gone for three days. James believed her and let her be. One day I was out at a mall further out of town and I saw her in the food court with another guy. She was holding his hand and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He had bought her some kind of gift and she kissed him when she saw it. I took a picture of them kissing and showed it to him when I got home. Instead of being upset with her he took his anger out at me and told me I was trying to sabotage his relationship. At this time I had also come out to him, he said I just wanted to steal her and  _ dyke out with her _ ”

“Babe I'm so sorry, I know he's your brother but he was an asshole” Alex started to regret calling Kara in and saving James’ ass.

“It’s ok, he is an asshole” she laughed softly through light tears “He ignored me and stopped talking to me after that. We hadn't spoken in nearly a month when he called me crying and told me I was right. Apparently, she had broken up with him and even told him that she had been cheating on him. After this, it only went downhill from there. He started drinking and partying a lot. He began to grow this really bad temper. One day he met another girl and started to clean up his act, or so I thought. Things were going well and from what I could tell he liked her and she liked him. He started getting paranoid, constantly wanting to check her phone, and wanted passwords to all of her social media. He started telling her what she could and could not wear, and who she could and couldn't talk to. He grew more and more controlling over time. She had enough of him and told him she wasn't going to listen to his rules and allow him to control her. As payback, he started partying and would get involved with other girls and when she confronted him he was drunk and started getting violent. She left him and I got him to get it together. He was doing well until Lucy.”

Kelly stopped and began to break down. Alex immediately wrapped her up into her arms and stroked her tenderly as Kelly sobbed. It broke her heart to see the two people closest to her so broken, and it made Alex almost shatter as well. But to keep them together, she had to stay together.

‘I tried to help, I sent him to therapy. I kept him away from alcohol and made sure he went to AA meetings. I connected him with a therapist to help with his anger. But I could only do so much by myself. And now he’s done this and to Lena of all people. I could have prevented it. I should have paid more attention and checked in more. Not only am I a terrible sister but what kind of woman am I to let this happen”

“Kelly you did everything you could have done, and like you said you could only do so much. You helped him, but you also need to remember that he is an adult and is responsible for his own actions. You didn't do this to Lena, he did. You did what you could take on such a large role of taking care of your brother. You do so much to help everyone but sometimes you can't help everyone. All you can do is try your best and do your best. You are the most kind-hearted strong woman I know and I'll be damned if I ever let you forget that. It was not your fault.”

Kelly sniffled and Alex felt her give a small smile against her chest 

“It will be ok, and I will be right here with you”

“You promise?” she whispered 

“I promise”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 8 will be part 3
> 
> I honestly don't really like it, something about the beginning is missing something but IDK what it is


	7. Chapter 7

One minute Lena was being pushed against the wall struggling and gasping for air. Then it went black, She opened her eyes and drew in a large gasp of air. Clutching her chest and hyperventilating, Lena counted her breaths with an attempt to slow them. Taking in her surroundings she began to panic again. It looked like her penthouse but instead of the lifeless walls in her bedroom, there were framed photos and art hanging on walls. Pictures of her and Kara. One picture sat in a white frame on a night table, small numbers inscribed into the frame. A date, Where was she?

  
  


Then Lena went stiff as her senses finally registered that someone else was in the bed. She heard the soft snores coming to the left of her and felt the bed shift as the person moved. When she turned her head she could have sworn she had a mini heart attack. Ocean blue eyes covered by elegant golden hair splayed against Karas's face. Lena began to fidget with her fingers but something caught her attention A diamond ring sat idle on her ring finger. Then it began to click, she was married. She was married to Kara, a hoarse voice snapped Lena out of her internal panic. 

  
  


“Good morning my love” 

A soft kiss was placed on her shoulder and she leaned into the loving embrace. So was the whole James thing just a dream? She didn't know.

“ Your heart is beating really fast, you ok baby?”

“Yeah, I just um… I just had a bad dream” 

“Well I'm here ok if you ever wanna talk about it, always” 

Lena felt Kara's arms snake around her and pull her into a soft loving embrace. This was new to Lena, nobody had ever shown her love and kindness like this before. 

“Thank you darling” 

  
  


Kara got up from the bed and walked into what was apparently _their_ bathroom, and dropped her clothes to the floor. This created a naked display of Kara’s body in the doorway, much to Lena's approval. Lena’s jaw dropped to the floor, and a pool of arousal hit Lena's stomach. Kara looked like she could have been carved out of stone. Her toned back and firm arm muscle made it hard for her to focus on anything else but Kara. Then when Lena thought she had finally died, Kara turned to face Lena one last time and gave her a small wink. It was at that moment that Lena knew she was a goner. If this was her new reality, she never wanted to leave. 

  
  


Was it a dream? Was she ever really with James? What the hell happened?

  
  


She got up as Kara finally entered into the shower and left her room. She was greeted with what looked like her old penthouse but livelier. The grey pillows that once played on the dull couch in her living room were replaced by colorful throw pillows accented with woven blankets. A few plants lingered in the corner of the home, and not the fake ones Lena had but real ones. Walking into the kitchen everything appeared to be the same except for the pair of "hers and hers" mugs sitting idly on the counter. So they were married. 

  
  


Lena began opening the fridge, cabinets, and pantry, collecting things to make breakfast. She was so surprised to see herself easily adjusting to this domesticated lifestyle with Kara. To Lena's surprise, she found that all traces of kara could be found within their food selection. Boxes of cookies and tooth-rotting cereal sat on shelves in the pantry. The freezer had been stocked to the brim with sweet frozen treats that would only appeal to Kara. She sighed and began to make an array of breakfast foods and coffee for their morning.

  
  


After finishing her work with the morning's breakfast she sat and pondered at her current predicament. If Kara and she were married, why couldn't she remember anything? Was any of this even real? It all felt too good to be true, it had to be a dream right? Despite Lena’s internal conflict, there was one thing that stuck in her mind. This felt right. Even though Lena couldn't place the feeling she felt like she belonged here. Like this is the life she was meant to have, that she wanted to have. A life with Kara.

  
  


“Oh. My. Rao” 

  
  


Lena looked up abruptly, being startled out of her thoughts. Lena's mouth went dry as kara stood there hair damp with grey sweats and a white tank-top that clung tightly to her body. Lena was going insane, the faint outline of karas abs made her body shake.

  
  


“I- um I made it for you” 

  
  


Lena smiled and swallowed hard. Kara walked slowly over to Lena where she sat at the other side of the table. Reaching over to lift her upwards, drawing a small shriek from Lena. She pulled her out of her chair and into a soft kiss. Lena wrapped her legs around Kara's torso and kissed her back. The kiss was soft and tender but both women poured so much love into it. Lena pulled away for air almost dazed and lightheaded. As Lena looked deeply into her eyes she felt like she was floating on air.

  
  


“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” 

“No, I don't think you have” 

“Well I should do it more often because you are the epitome of amazing Lena Danvers-Luthor and you deserve to be recognized for it”

  
  


Lena got butterflies, nobody had ever thanked or praised her before for something this trivial. It made Lena feel appreciated, a foreign feeling that took over her body when Kara spoke or even looked at her. And that feeling only increased when Kara finally sat down, pulling Lena into her lap. Kara grabbed her fork and seemed to be in deep concentration on what she should try first. The choice between waffles, pancakes, french toast, the mountain of bacon and sausage, croissants, and a bowl of every fruit imaginable. Then of course as Lena predicted she chose one of each to put on her plate. Kara moaned into the first bite of the french toast. This made Lena's stomach do backflips. Kata began to tear into her food, stopping to feed Lena a few bites here and there ignoring Lena's protest.

  
  


When the whole table of food had finally been cleared and plates had been put into the dishwasher they found themselves cuddled up on the couch. Kara being the big spoon buried her face into Lena's shoulder.

  
  


“Thank you for taking the weekend off, I know how important work is for you”

“For you, anything mi amor”

“I love when you call me that” 

“Well I guess I'll just have to do it more often then”

Lena scooted in closer to kara and in return, Kara pulled her in tighter. They decided to watch a show on Netflix. Apparently, it was some mid-evil sorcery show or something with “Wizards and such” as Kara put it. But Lena could easily see her excitement as she read the shows summary. They began watching and Lena could feel kara staring intently at the TV. When a young girl with long dark hair and striking green eyes. She was young and hade very fair and pale skin. She was the king's ward named in a place called Camelot. Then Kara paused the show when Morgana's face came into frame and sat up abruptly almost forcing Lena off the couch.

  
  


“Oh. My. Rao” 

“You're saying that a lot today” Lena giggled 

“You look just like her, well an older version at least” 

“I am not old”

“Well no but she does look just like you, a young hot version of you” 

“She does no, I am very much hotter than her” Lena pouted 

“Aw, are you jealous?”

“Am not”

“Are too” 

“I'm just saying Lena if I went back in time I would definitely have had a crush on he-”

“Alright miss love bird, then ill just leave you to drool over your new crush here then” Lena smirked and leaned in to kiss kara then pulled away at the last minute. Now it was Karas turn to pout.

“Lena baby-”

  
  


Lena got up and began walking to their room swaying her hips with each step, leaving a dazed Kara behind in the living room. Once she reached the doorway she pulled her hair dramatically from her bun.

  
  


“Well you know where to find me,” she said with a wink and disappeared behind the door

  
  


It hadn't been two seconds before kara swooped in lifted Lena and placed her over her shoulder. She shrieked and hit her fists at karas back while she laughed. Lena found herself back on the couch but refused to cuddle Kara, so she sat with her legs and arms crossed with a pout on her face. Kara found it adorable and had to stifle a laugh at the sight. 

  
  


“Lena sweetie come cuddle me” 

“I refuse” 

“Fine if you insist, we'll have to do this the hard way” 

Kara reached over slowly and began an attack of tickles on Lena.

“Surrender” 

“Never,” Lena said through a fit of giggles

“All right then” 

  
  


Kara reached behind Lena and began attacking her neck with her fingers. This was Lena's ultimate tickle spot. 

  
  


“Ok ok, I surrender, I SURRENDER!” Lena laughed and began catching her breath 

“Ok we'll get over here” Kara opened her arms to welcome Lena 

“No, you will get no cuddles until I get an apology from you Mrs.Kara Danvers-Luthor” 

Kara sighed and kneeled in front of Lena, taking her hand into her own. 

  
  


“Lena Danvers-Luthor you are the most beautiful ageless woman in the universe and I love you more than all the potstickers in the world”

  
  


“And..?” 

“You are the hottest, sexiest woman I've ever seen”

“And..?”

“You are definitely hotter than a fictional Morgana will ever be” 

“Alright that will suffice, you may get your cuddles now” 

  
  


They got back into her positions of little spoon Lena and big spoon Kara and continued the show. Lena leaned into Kara's embrace and sighed a content sigh, she was happy. Happier then she had ever been.

  
  


_“Lena?”_

The voice was karas but it wasn't coming from behind her where kara laid. 

_“Lena?”_

Suddenly a holographic supergirl appeared in front of her 

**What. The. Hell?!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Filler?  
> I honestly dont know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I moved a chapter to help the story make more sense 
> 
> I have to write on my phone until my new computer gets here so this is as good as it gets for a while :(

Kelly and Alex had sat in silence for a few moments before Kelly requested to go see Lena. Of course Alex protested given Kelly’s emotional state, but her girlfriend persisted. So here they were standing in front of Lena’s room in the med bay, standing in the glass doorway. Just as she was there for Kara Alex held Kelly’s hand tightly. Alex asked Kelly silently to wait in the doorway so she could speak to kara.

  
  


Kara sat at Lena’s bedside, tears no longer able to release themselves from her eyes. She was all drained out. It had been a couple hours since she had dropped James off and she had not moved an inch since Alex had left her. Her body drooped over Lena's and her hand still appears lifeless in Kara’s. Her left hand went up to push Lena’s stray locks out of her face every couple seconds. Only sounds floating through the room were the quiet sniffles from Kara with the beeping of monitors. Karas continued to snap herself awake as she felt the feeling of drowsiness overtake her. 

  
  


Alex slowly crept up towards her to not scare her. She could see how exhausted Kara was but knew her sister would be too stubborn to leave. 

  
  


“Hey Kar, Kelly’s here is it ok if she comes in?” Kara shook herself awake and gave a small nod. Kelly walking in slowly stepped on the opposite side of Lena’s bed and stood there silently. Suddenly when she thought she had no more tears left to cry she began to sob

“I'm so sorry Kara, I'm sorry that this happened to Lena, I'm sorry that James did this to Lena and put you in a position like this. I know i could apologize with every fiber in my being for the rest of my life and i know it couldn't take away any pain or fix anything but just know that i'm so very sorry Kara. I would completely understand if you wanted nothing to do with me ever ” Kara got up and shuffled over to Kelly's side.

“This isn't your fault Kelly and i know that, if anything i should be apologizing to you considering I almost killed your brother” Kara laughed sheepishly “You cannot control the actions of another person, you have nothing to apologize for. I would never push you away or blame you for this. If anything I'm grateful that Alex has you and you have Alex to support each other in times like this. I would never take that away from you.”

“Thank you Kara” 

“Ok now that it's settled, no more blaming anyone but James now right?” Alex said, trying to lighten the mood. Both women nodded and chuckled. “Now first we have to deal with James so we can get to taking care of Lena. Kara why don't you head home and get some rest- “ 

Kara immediately cut in at the mention of Leaving Lena. “No, I'll stay here until she wakes up and James is in jail. 

“Kara i'm sure that everything will be fine if you leave to take care of yourself for a couple hours I will make sure Lena’s recovers and James is put away” 

“I understand you're trying to take care of me Alex, but the best thing for me right now is to stay here.” 

"Ok," Alex sighed at her sister's stubbornness. "But you need to know that because James is a civilian, we will have to release him to the NCPD where he'll be booked and processed." 

Kara nodded, although it frustrated her that she wouldn't be able to oversee his detainment. She looked over at Lena, and her heart clenched again. 

"Will we be able to oversee everything at the precinct?" Kelly asked

"Yes, up until he's charged and moved to federal prison to wait for his court hearing, but we need to consider the possibility of him making bail." Kara's eyes widened in shock as she processed the facts. "I don't think it's possible with the extent of the charges that will be made against him, and the fact that Lena almost died."

"But it's still a possibility?" Kelly asked, and Alex nodded.

"Bail will be about $50,000, but it might be more considering that Lena is basically in a coma."

Kara sighed and buried her face in her hands and gave an exasperated sigh.

"So he'll just be out and about then if he makes bail?" Kara asked

"Yes, but only up until his hearing," Alex walked over to Kara, giving her a small comforting hug. " If he does, I promise you I won't even let him breathe the same air as Lena." 

"Thank you, Alex, for everything." 

"Of course, don't even worry about it." Alex offered a small smile

"So how about you both go home shower and take care of yourselves and ill prep for transport." Both women made attempts to protest at the plan but were shut down by a persisting and worried Alex.  _ How lucky was I to get both a stubborn sister and girlfriend? _ Alex laughed at her thought. "Uh uh, I don't want to hear it. You both have been through too much in the past few hours, and I will not let you continue without some type of rest so shoo." Alex began shooing them away, practically pushing them out of the room. 

"Ok, Ok, we're going handsy," Kelly said, giving Alex a quick kiss."

"Hey!" Alex pouted. 

"what?" Kelly giggled 

"Kiss me like you mean it," Alex whined

"Well, considering you were in such a hurry to get me to leave, I don't think you deserve one," Kelly laughed, Alex only pouted in response. 

"Ok fine come here, you big baby," Kelly giggled and reached over to place a loving kiss on Alex's lips. 

"Gross, you guys are cute but gross," Kara gagged dramatically at the sight. 

Finally, the pair got to moving. Kara walked Kelly to her car since it was well into the night. 

"Hey, I just wanted to thank you for being here for me and Alex. Oh, and sorry for trying to kill you brother," Kara apologized sheepishly, digging her boot into the ground. 

"It's fine Kar, I honestly want to kill him myself." Kelly sighed "I think it's great that you're here for Lena, I can tell you love her.

Kara immediately blushed a bright red. "Oh, yeah of course I care for Lena but love?..." Kara paused. “As a friend of course I love Lena, I would do anything to protect her but I just… I don't know”

Kelly shook her head at Kara's obliviousness. Kara had some work to do when it came to even acknowledge her feelings for Lena. Both Alex and Kelly found it painful to watch the two dance around each other. 

"You guys are... difficult," Kelly sighed with a slight chuckle. "I've said too much already, this is for you to come to terms with. And with that, I bid you goodnight." Kelly proceeded to enter her car and speed off leaving, Kara in a bewildered state.

**

Kara flew in through the open window in her loft and collapsed onto her couch. A content sigh finally released herself as she felt her strained muscles finally start to slowly relax. She laid there lifeless for a few minutes, as Kelly's words replayed in her head. 

" _ I can tell you love her."  _

"Well duh." Kara thought aloud. Of course, she loved Lena. She would make sure Lena knew it too. Whether it was in small service acts like getting her lunch, knowing Lena would often  _ forget _ to eat. Checking in secretly with Jess to make sure Lena wasn't overworking herself. Small physical touches like hugs and such, cuddling during movie night. The use of pet names was also a thing. But best friends did that stuff all the time, right?!

Kara cringed at the term  _ "Bestfriends"  _ But that's what they were, best friends. And that was alright with Kara, she didn't want anymore or any less. It was more like a question to herself than a statement.

Kara trapped herself in her thoughts for a few more minutes before realizing she was still in her Supergirl suit. And although it was great for kicking ass, it wasn't meant for in-home wear. 

Kara got up and dragged her feet to her bathroom. She stared at herself in the mirror. Dark creases had barely begun to paint the area under her blue eyes. her hair looked dull as it sat on her shoulder. She needed a shower. 

Kara shed her super-suit and her under the breathable biker shorts and sports bra she wore under. She turned on the shower-head and immediately stepped in, a slight waver in her movements. She let the cold water rush over her body, not letting the icy chill of the liquid bother her. Kara quickly lathered herself and washed her hair. She stepped out drying herself of super speeding to get changed into some more comfortable clothes. 

Walking out of her room and into her kitchen she was confronted with the chilling loneliness off the air. She felt empty without Lena like something was missing. The world around her seemed to sense her mood. Hard rain attacked her windows while disconsolate clouds blanketed the sky. This didn't help Kara in her efforts to remain positive.

Leaning against the counter, Kara drew in a deep breath. She tried to tune into Lena's breathing or listen to any sort of movement associated with Lena. But because of the lead lining, she wasn't able to hear anything. Of course, after Cadmus, the DEO has some upgrades. Lead lined walls had been one of the many that had been insisted upon. Sill, kara focused on as hard as she could. Blocking out any other noise, and still nothing. So she stood gripping her kitchen counter, eyes clenched shut, trying to find something in a wave of silence. 

She felt the surface vibrate, startling her out of concentration. Her body jolted at the sudden sensation and she gripped tighter onto the counter losing control of her powers. "Damn it," Kara cursed, small chunks of her counter crumbled onto the floor. She sighed and looked over at her phone. Two messages had been sent from Alex, and kara started to worry. Of course, Alex had said everything was alright, but she couldn't help but wince at the thought of something going wrong. 

Reluctantly Kara picked up her phone and read the messages cringing at the time.

Ms.Badass: Hey Kar, just checking in :)

Me: Hey Alex I'm fine thanks for checking in, How's everything at the DEO? 

Ms.Badass: Everythings shaping up. I have to stay overnight to watch over the process of James' transfer and keep eyes on Lena. 

Me: How's she doing? 

Kara bit her lip in anticipation 

Ms.Badass: She's fine she is recovering really well actually, and I think we can use Maxwell's technology to get here later today. 

Kara sighed in relief

Me: Thank you for keeping an eye out for her 

Ms.Badass: ugh too many thank you's today. If it were any other time I would love them but they are making me sick. So NO MORE THANK YOU'S!!!!!! I MEAN IT

Kara chuckled at her sister's antics 

Me: Alright Ms. Alex "I'm too humble" Danvers I bid you goodnight and I will never thank you again. 

Ms.Badass: oh haha, alright you get some sleep it's like 3 am, and I'll call you later in the day. Love you 

Me: Love you too <3

Kara sighed and looked down at the mess of rubble on the floor.

**

It was about 9 am when kara was shaken out of her sleep by the ringing of her phone. The vibrations rippled throughout her sheets. Immediately she thrashed around looking for it. Groaning when she finally realized it was right next to her.

"Hello?" She rasped 

"Hey Kar, sorry if I woke you." Alex apologized 

"mmhm," Kara mumbled, still half asleep. 

"James is being transferred to the NCPD precinct at noon today, and Lena's vitals checks out. Well be able to detach her from black mercy today, but I think it would be best if we did it after James is taken into custody." Kara perked up at the mention of Lena.

"Oh that's great thanks to Alex, your welcome to oversee the process but I think it wou-"

"No no I'm going, I'll be at the DEO around 11," Kara breathed out an interruption. 

  
  


Alex sighed with a roll of her eyes with Kara's persistence. "Alright so I'll see you then, Bye" 

"Kay' bye," Kara said 

Kara leaped out of bed, energy finally surging through her body as she opened her curtains. 

Kara smiled. 

They were going to get Lena today, Lena was coming  **_home_ ** . 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise i will have james get slapped or something in a chapter but u couldn't fit it into this chapter
> 
> Also this wasn't proof read so I hope grammarly Did its job
> 
> And please leave some comments i love reading them <3


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hope i did yall justice (did I add what people have been asking for? maybe I did)
> 
> anyway, comment stuff in the comments (good and "bad" criticism always welcome :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're almost at 10 chapters :))  
> thank you all for all the love and support and kudos *mwah <3

(!!TW: VIOLENCE!!)

Recap from Chapter 7:

“Lena?”

  
  


The voice was karas but it wasn't coming from behind her where kara laid. 

“Lena?” 

  
  


Suddenly a holographic supergirl appeared in front of her 

What. The. Hell?!

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Kara arrived early at the DEO around 11:30. Of course, she was eager given that they were getting Lena out today, but she knew they had to take care of James before they did anything. Honestly, Kara preferred it that way. She didn't want Lena to have to wake up and have to be in the same environment as him. 

  
  


Kara strutted down the DEO stairs and into the hub looking around for Alex. She came to a screeching halt when she heard profanities being shouted by a fury filled voice. She knew that voice all too well. 

  
  


Then she saw him. 

  
  


Being dragged through the main area of the DEO in an off-white jumpsuit was James. As soon as Kara's eyes laid on him, she stiffened and clenched her fists. Her heart rate began to rise, and she felt a sweltering wave of pure hatred overtake her. 

  
  


And there he was, it was a mistake for him to be able to breathe the same as kara or Lena. The fact that He was perfectly fine without a scratch on him, while Lena had been lying almost braindead in the DEO didn't sit right with Kara. 

  
  


He continued to be pulled by the two DEO agents across the room. He grunted and cursed at the agents with every move. When he finally was parallel to kara looking her straight in the eye, he gave his evil grin. He stopped and faced her. Kara knew she couldn't let him spite her so she remained unphased and just stared. Every muscle in her body told her to beat his face into the floor, but she didn't. 

  
  


"Hey Supergirl, fancy seeing you here," He said, all too innocently. Still, Kara only glared at him. Her control over her anger towards this man was growing thinner by the second. "I'm sure you're here to see Lena, aren't you?" 

  
  


Kara dug her nails into her palms and stepped forward. "You have no right to ever mention her again, I'll be damned if you even have the nerve to even think of her," she said, her voice stiff and unwavering. 

  
  


James only laughed at her "Or what you'll have missed sunshine Kara Danvers send you to kill me again?" He said chuckling. 

  
  


Kara could only smile, "Oh no, James that would be too easy. Next time i'll make sure you feel every source of pain imaginable. I'll make your nightmares come true and make you wish I had killed you"

  
  


James' face went blank for a second, and she saw the glint of fear in his eyes. Then he smiled again, which only annoyed Kara. "Tell Lena I said hi, and oh.." he leaned in closer "Sorry for the mess," he whispered. 

  
  


That's when whatever ounce of control Kara had vanished in an instant. She took in a deep breath and relaxed. James had thought he won, giving the largest smile in the world. He thought he defeated supergirl, pushing her to a point where she couldn't even fight back. What an idiot. Little did he know Kara was only deciding which one of his bones she should break. 

  
  


Backing up a little kara swung hard and fast at James' face. Of course, she couldn't use the full extent of her powers because that would kill him. Or maybe she used just enough to make sure that she would remember the pure pain she could put him through. Effortlessly she might add. 

  
  


James would've fallen backward if it weren't for the agents holding him up. She laughed and took another step forward. Pulling his arm behind his back, she twisted. "Like I said James, Don't you even dare think about Ms.Luthor or I'll make sure I'll be the last and only thing you see as I put you through a world of pain and agony," Kara whispered in his ear. Only small whines and whimpers came from James, as tears flowed down his face. "Do you understand?" she shouted. 

  
  


Still, James did not respond much to kara's annoyance. He would not leave until he learned the consequences of his actions, Kara would make sure of it. 

  
  


"Do you understand!?" she asked again, twisting his arm even more, which caused it to crack and break. James screamed out in pain.

  
  


"Yes, YES I understand," he said through tears.

"I will make sure you rot in a cell until the day you die."

Kara simply let go of his arm watching as he winced at the pain. James shuffled away with a bruised lip, broken nose, black eye, and a broken arm. 

As soon as James was out of her line of sight, Kara released a deep breath. Relaxing the joints in her body and releasing her hands from their position of being clenched. patches of blood spotted her hands, she had to get cleaned up before Alex found her. 

  
  


Too late

  
  


"KARA ZOR-EL DANVERS, GET YOUR ASS UP HERE!" Kara winced at Alex's voice. Hopefully, she hadn't seen anything and could avoid the _ "Blah Blah behave Blah Blah do the right thing”  _ talk. 

Kara lowered her head and walked up the stairs, to the med bay where Alex stood arms crossed. 

"Kara Zor-El Danvers, you cannot come into the DEO and just start punching people and breaking their arms like you're some highschool football player." 

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Kara mumbled.

"You're really testing my patience here Kar. I know you're angry with him with everything, but you can't just break him. I will not allow you to abuse your power. I don't want to have to babysit you," 

"You sound like Mom," Kara grumbled 

"Oh shut up," Alex said, "Well I'm waiting..." 

"I'm not gonn-" Kara protested. Alex only gave her the glare a mother could have, Kara could only notice how good she was at it.

"Fine, I'm sorry" she mumbled

"For?" Alex asked 

"I'm sorry I keep punching people and acting like a high school football player" Alex rolled her eyes and smiled. 

"Thank you, that will be all." Kara only rolled her eyes in response "Nice punch though" 

Kara piped up at the compliment "Thanks, see I knew you wouldn't be too ma-" 

"Don't push it, Kar," Alex added and Kara raised her arms in defense. 

  
  


Lena's brain had fully repaired itself now, and she was ready to be pulled out from under black mercy. But that was the hard part. Kara remembered how she had almost killed both her and Alex with her hesitation. By this time she didn't even know if Kara could remember the outside world. Kara had to go in using Maxwell lords tech and convince Lena to come out. The longer Lena stayed under Black mercy's effects, the harder it would be to get her out. 

  
  


Kara sighed when Alex presented her with the current situation. 

  
  


"You can go to the precinct, and take care of James and we can try to get her out later. Kelly already said she could take your place if you were too tied up here," 

"I'll stay," Kara said without hesitation. "You have the best girlfriend" Kara laughed. 

"Yea I do," Alex smiled 

"Ok I'll let kelly know, and we'll get you set up"

**

Kara sat next to Lena's limp body on the bed. Sandwiching Lena's hand between her own, she kissed the top of her knuckles. Kara sighed deeply and leaned forward, brushing the top of Lena's head. 

  
  


"We're gonna get you out, and I will never let anyone hurt you again." She whispered. 

  
  


Alex came back and stopped in the doorway, watching her sister. She always saw how protective Kara was of Lena. Kara was always a sunshine puppy basket but around Lena, she melted and swooned. Honestly, the pining behavior could be seen on both sides. During game nights Alex always noticed how intently Lena would watch Kara and how she would laugh at all her jokes (no matter how lame or corny they were). Kara would occasionally glance up at Lena making sure she felt comfortable or wasn't feeling out of place. And when Lena called Kara " _ Darling,"  _ in that flirtatious tone that Kara seemed not to notice, kara barely keeping it together would grin and blush like an idiot. It was kind of gross honestly. 

  
  


Alex knocked on the doorway and walked into the med bay. On her cart was the helmet once used to retrieve kara from her black mercy fantasy. Wires in a variety of colors scattered around the base of the cart. 

  
  


Attaching the wire pads to various parts of Kara's body, Alex could see how tense she was. She could only imagine how nervous she was. Attaching a pair of neuro exprisers (yea I made that up) to Lena's temples, and onto the device. After monitoring Kara's vitals for a few minutes to assure that she was well enough to go in, Alex prepared the helmet. 

  
  


The air was tense and cold. Finally, Kara broke the silence, her voice quiet and sincere.

  
  


"Alex, I need you to know that if I don't come out with Lena, I'm not coming out at all." 

"Ka-," Alex began to object but remembered when she was in Kara's position. She had vowed not to be pulled out unless her sister was coming with her. Knowing the bond and love that Kara had for Lena and the guilt she felt, she knew that Kara meant what she said. So Alex had only one choice, honor Kara's wishes. Even if it meant that she could lose her sister in the process. "Alright," she sighed.

"Thank you," Kara said earnestly. Alex only nodded with a small smile. 

Kara leaned back into the Medical bed and relaxed as Alex placed the device snugly over her head. Alex leaned over and squeezed Kara's hand gently in reassurance. 

"Alright don't do anything stupid" Alex laughed through her fear.

"Can't make any promises" Kara chuckled 

"Alright, I'm gonna put you through, remember you can only make her reject her fantasy to come out. She's been under for a long time, so she may not even remember much. Use personal things to remind her of reality, and try to get her out as quickly as possible." 

Kara nodded and Alex began pressing buttons on her tablet sending kara through. 

  
  


***

  
  


Slowly her vision faded to black then into white as Kara entered the realm of Lena's subconscious. She was in an endless cavity of empty white space. kara looked around as her eyes adjusted to the change. A door in its frame stood idle just feet away from where Kara stood. She could hear the faint sound of giggling, and the murmur of a television. 

  
  


She sighed deeply and inched over to the door, her heavy steps weighing her down. With each stride, the sounds got louder and clearer. She heard what sounded like music to her ears. Lena was laughing, no- Lena was giggling. Kara stood in front of the door savoring the sound and the joy it brought. 

  
  


As kara stood face to face with the door, she felt her breaths quicken and her heart speed began to beat out of her chest. Then the reality of the situation and its possible downfalls hit her. What if Lena didn't want to come out? What if Lena hated Kara for not being there? Worst of all, what if Lena truly did blame her? All that Kara worked towards in her relationship with Lena would be gone. 

  
  


Kara quickly set the doubts to the back of her mind as she remembered her only mission. 

  
  


Get. Lena. out. 

  
  


The mantra played the mantra in her head like a song. 

  
  


Reaching up and grasping the door handle firmly she drew in a deep breath and opened the door. 

  
  


Opening the door to its full width, sweat coated Kara's palms. Then she froze as her eyes finally registered on the sight before her. 

  
  


walking in kara didn't know what to expect. 

  
  


She had anticipated that Lena's reality would look like her desires or any fantasy created by her subconscious. But this- this took Kara by surprise. Of all the variations and possibilities, Kara would never think this is what she’d be greeted with. It made her heart clench tightly, and the air in her body was held captive by her lungs. 

  
  


Stepping in, Kara was met with what could only be Lena's penthouse. She took a moment to scan her surroundings. Peering into the kitchen, an abundance of dishes sat discarded in the sink. Picture frames of both her Lena and even some of the superfriends were scattered around the home. A pair of hers and her mugs sat at the top of the pile. Realization Kara, Lena was married here. To a woman.

  
  


Kara felt a small pang of jealousy when this discovery dawned upon her. But of course, Kara had no right to be jealous. Lena was only her best friend, nothing more. If anything, she should be happy that Lena had a fantasy to escape to with all she's been through. But Kara couldn't help but feel somewhat heartbroken, she pushed the feelings aside and regained focus.

  
  


She peered around at the rest of the room. When Kara's eyes laid on Lena, she became weak in the knees. Lena wore her hair down instead of it in its usual high ponytail. She was bare-faced and the paleness in her skin made her look so soft and fragile. Not like the badass CEO boss bitch most people saw her as. An oversized MIT shirt draped around her frame. Lena looked so elegant and relaxed, and Kara wished she could relish this view. Kara wished she could leave Lena to live the happy life she wanted and deserved. 

  
  


Kara's eyes finally found its way to blonde hair and a figure that laid behind Lena on the couch they were on. The feeling of hurt and envy reclaimed Kara. Before she could even think, her body was finding itself moving closer to the area of which Lena was laying.

  
  


"Lena?" her voice called out. It seemed like Lena had heard her but just hadn't registered where the sound was coming from. It took two more calls of Lena's name for her to look up and finally see Kara standing before her. 

  
  


Of course, Lena was shocked as anticipated. But not as shocked as Kara was when she saw that the figure that was behind Lena was her. More importantly, it was the person Lena was married to. Lena's fantasy was about her- no, it was about  **_them._ ** Kara’s eyes immediately shot down to Lena’s Left hand and she saw the ring. Then looking back over the woman who was supposed to be her, eyeing her left hand where a ring of reasonable size made itself known on her hand.

  
  


Confusion and astonishment rushed through Lena. Looking back to the Kara that currently sat on the couch. The Kara who was her wife and back to the person who also appeared to be Kara. What the hell is going on?

  
  


"Who the hell are you?" Lena demanded.

  
  


Kara shook the coat of astonishment that was holding her back from any sort of function that allowed her to communicate. 

  
  


"Lena its- it's me Ka-?" Kara eased forward slowly moving closer to Lena. It was so good to see her face. Her skin wasn't painted with bruises that told the story of her horrors. It was just Lena in her purest form, something Kara rarely got to see from the CEO. 

  
  


Lena sat up abruptly, alerting the figure behind her. She stood just only feet away from where Kara stood being transmitted before her. The only thing separating them was the glass table planted in the middle of the room. 

  
  


"No, no your not." Lena opposed "This- This is Kara." Lena turned and forced a pointed finger at the Kara who sat indolently behind her on the couch. "That is Kara, my wife Kara." Lena paused and eyed kara's frame "You, you're- I don't know who you are."

  
  


The other Kara- Lena's  _ wife  _ Kara, stood and grasped Lena's hand. She glared at the blonde, scowling at her. Kara shook slightly, she had to admit, she did look kind of intimidating. "You need to leave, now." There was no leniency in this kara's voice. 

  
  


Kara ignored her and looked back over to Lena who showed emotions of slight fear and confusion. Kara took another small step forward closer to Lena. In turn, the other kara took a protective step somewhat shielding Lena. 

  
  


"Lena I- I need you to come with me" 

"I'm not going anywhere with you,” Lena stated defiantly. 

"I know this all feels real and I know you want it so badly to be real but you have to know this is all a fantasy." Kara paused slightly and drew in a small shaky breath. "You're under the effects of black mercy, you've been under a coma for the past three days."

Lena only shook her head at kara. 

"If you don't leave with me we could both die we need to get out of here." Kara’s voice was eager.

"I don't believe you," Lena stated 

"You're the CEO of a tech company, your one of the smartest people in the world and one of the smartest people I know. You're strong, your kind, and crush anyone in a board room without breaking a sweat. You dedicate your life to trying to change the world for the better. The Lena I know can dodge bullets one day and build a hospital minutes later. I know you, Lena, I need you to believe me." Kara waited and watched Lena.

  
  


Lena could only stand there and shake her head. "No, you're not real," Lena said, her voice shaking. She sounded so small and frail, unlike the ball crushing CEO she knew. 

  
  


The world around them began to shake. Kara needed to try harder, she needed her to remember. Lena had to remember her last few moments of consciousness, for they were the memories that were the most vivid. 

  
  


Kara sighed and took another step forward, almost losing her balance as the world around them trembled violently. "You live in a national city, and your dating James Olsen." Kara watched as Lena's eyes widened at the mention of James, and her chest clenched tightly. "James, James- he hurt you." Kara had begun crying now. Icy tears began trickling down her face. "He hurt you badly and told you he loved you. But he didn't love you, Lena and you shouldn't know love like that. I couldn't protect you. I should've been there, I should have seen it but I didn't, and I'm so sorry Lena.

  
  


Lena was frozen, her eyes still widened from the mention of James. With each moment the world around them shook harder and vigorously. Items around the rattled and fell to the ground. The sounds of glass breaking and furniture collapse pried Lena from her state of suspension. With another shake of the room, the other Kara fell to the ground. Kara took another step forward and grasped Lena's hands tightly. 

  
  


"I'm sorry Lena, but I promise you if you leave and come with me, I will do everything within my power and more to keep you safe. I cant promise you that you'll never be hurt again, but I can promise that I will  **always** be there. I'll make sure you are loved, and that you know what real love is." 

  
  


Lena looked up with glassy eyes "Let's go," she said, her voice filled with uncertainty 

  
  


Kara nodded and they made their way to the door which Kara entered through. Lena's hand in hers Kara glanced back at her and gave a small reassuring smile. 

  
  


They were going  _ home _ . 

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't get my computer for a couple of weeks :(  
> but Idk how to feel about this chapter I hate everything I write as soon as I post it but w/e 
> 
> do I have ideas for a second story? maybe... >:)  
> but that means yall won't like the ending 
> 
> DONT FORGET TO COMMENT i thrive off of them


	10. !Chapter 10¡

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We made it yall CHAPTER 10!!
> 
> Thank u for all the kudos and support in the writing of this fic   
> Ik its shitty but yall seem to enjoy it so thank u sm❤️
> 
> Keep bringing in the comments i always enjoy them :) (criticism always welcome ofc)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lets pretend the tech difficulties didn’t happen and i posted this on time

Alex sat closely next to Kara holding her hand tightly. She hoped kara wasn't doing anything stupid right now. It had been just about 15 minutes since Alex sent kara through. The stress of any sort of complications weighed heavily on her. The reality that her sister could die along with Lena didn't help her at all.

  
  


Kelly had been at the precinct ever since Kara had gotten to the DEO. She promised to check-in with updates after James was processed, she left. Alex's eyes darted to her phone to kara and the EKG, and back to her phone again. Alex's head was swarming with worry and anticipation. Just then Kelly walked up behind her and placed her arm softly on her girlfriend's shoulder. Alex flinched at the feeling, and her body tensed before she saw it was only Kelly. She let out a deep shaky breath and gave a small laugh. 

  
  


"Hey, sorry I didn't call first. I didn't mean to scare you," Kelly apologized.

"It's fine, I'm just a little on edge," Alex sighed and Leaned into Kelly's Torso. 

"Understandable," Kelly pulled Alex in closer "How long has she been in there?" She asked.

"I sent her through a little after our call ended, so about 20 minutes" Alex paused, "She asked me not to take her out," she whispered.

"She what?!" Kelly asked in surprise.

"She said if she- if she couldn't get Lena out she didn't want to be pulled out," Alex forced a small smile "But of course I agreed or she wouldn't have gone in. I was in her place at one point so I understand,"

"I know that must've been hard to hear but she'll come out, they both will."

"Thank you for being here," Alex mumbled softly. 

"Of course, always" Kelly placed a soft kiss to the top of Alex's head and held onto her shoulders. “But we really need to get these two together. The whole denying of the feelings along with letting nature take its course is not working out as well as we thought.” Kelly joked in an attempt to lighten the mood 

“Yeah it’s painful to watch,” Alex laughed. 

  
  


Alex and Kelly waited for what seemed like an eternity to Alex in the comforting silence. Alex felt her body relax more being in Kelly's embrace.

She released a shaky breath and continued to hold on tightly to Kara's hand. 

  
  


The pulsing sound of the EKG began to vibrate the walls around them. Both Kara's and Lena's temperatures began to spike, and their bodies began to seize. The monitors read their heart 

rates to be well above the normal limit. 

  
  


"What's wrong?" Kelly asked. 

  
  


Alex immediately grabbed her tablet, "They've been in there for too long. The reverie around them is going to collapse, killing both Lena and kara in the process." It was too much for Alex, she was so sure that Kara would be able to get Lena out. Or she had hoped that Kara would be able to. 

  
  


She needed to pull Kara out. 

  
  


She couldn't lose her sister. 

  
  


"Damn it" Alex yelled in frustration. 

  
  


Alex began typing in codes ready to deactivate the transmission. Alex hesitated and stared at the bright red button. She knew if she were to pull Kara out without Lena against her wishes Kara would hate her. The crushing guilt that would weigh on Kara not being able to save Lena again would destroy her. 

  
  


So she waited. She waited and hoped and prayed to everyone and anyone. They needed to come out. The red  _ "End Transmission"  _ button was torturing her. She switched her gaze from kara back to the button then to Lena. 

  
  


Then suddenly everything stopped. Alex trapped her breath in her lungs and waited for something, anything. progressively their heart rates began to return to normal along with their body temperature. The seizing slowed to a stop and their EKG read normal vitals. 

  
  


it was about five seconds of silence. A silence clouded with anticipation and worry. Then Alex heard the large gasp of air that was drawn by Kara. It was only then that Alex began to take normal breaths of air again. Kara sat up abruptly, almost knocking herself off the bed.

Tearing off the wires and patches attached to her body and rushed over to Lena's bedside. 

  
  


"Lena!" Kara's voice was unsteady, and Alex could tell it hadn't been easy in there. "Why isn't she waking up?" Kara looked at Alex, her eyes beginning to fill with tears. "She came with me, she should be waking up" 

  
  


"I- I don't know Kar," Alex admitted. She hadn't pulled Kara out so Lena  _ should  _ have woken up. 

  
  


"Lena, please if you can hear me, wake up" The tears being held in Kara's eyes began to set themselves free. "I need you to wake up please." Kara grasped Lena's hand and pulled it firmly against her chest. "I can't lose you again." she cried and pulled her hand and placed a soft kiss on her knuckles. 

  
  


Alex's heart swelled at the sight. If Lena didn't wake up, Kara would be broken beyond repair. The room went silent, Kara's light sobs being the only sound floating through the air. 

  
  


suddenly the figure of black mercy began to shrivel. Slowly it began to release itself from Lena's body. Kara pulled away from Lena and took a step back. Her eyes displayed shock and worry. "What's happening?" Kara looked at Alex with eager eyes, distress in her voice. The alien life form continued to get smaller until it was merely a bud on sitting on Lena's torso. 

  
  


"Black mercy is detaching itself from its host," Alex explained. 

"What does that mean?" Kara asked.

Alex stayed silent and moved closer to Lena's body to capture the bud. Carefully scooping it into the foreign containment jar. "Alex, what does it mean?" Kara asked again. 

Alex continued to transfer the bud. Staying silent and attempting to avoid the direction of the conversation. 

  
  


Kelly took a small step closer to Alex "What does it mean?" she asked warily.

"It means that she denied the fantasy but her back to reality is delayed or-," Alex paused, and small sigh left her throat, "Or it means that she- she was trapped for too long and didn't reject her fantasy quick enough so she- she's gone," Alex said 

"No, no!" Kara screamed, "I was supposed to save her this time, I was supposed to protect her and keep her safe. She came with me, she left with me. Why isn't she awake?"

"I- I don't know Kar," Alex whispered.

"Why did I wake up? If she is- if she didn't make it then why am I here!?" Kara was almost hysterical with tears now. 

"Kar, I honestly don't know," Alex admitted.

"The monitors say she's fine, her vitals are normal. She shouldn't- she can't be- "

" She’s still attached to the life support machines that are keeping her alive. None of it is her body actually working on its own.”

"When is soon?" Kara asked.

"I'm sorry Kar, but again, I don't really know. It could be a matter of days, weeks I can't really say."

"Is there anything you can do?" 

  
  


Alex hesitated. There was one thing, but considering the pros and cons, it was a low chance it would work and would probably end up actually killing Lena. 

  
  


"Alex, what is it?" Kara looked up. 

"It's too dangerous I don't want to risk it," Alex shook her head. 

  
  


Kara took a strong step towards her sister. placing her hands on her shoulders and looking into her eyes with pure desperation. 

  
  


"I was supposed to protect her. It hurts, so bad to know that you couldn't protect the person you love. You couldn't protect them when they needed you most. I can't let her go, not like this. She needed to be loved and to learn to love. Lena deserves a second chance, she deserves it. So if there's something, anything, do it. Save her Alex, for me, please," Kara poured her heart into her plea and meant every word of it. 

  
  


Alex pondered, she knew it was a long shot but she had to do something.

  
  


Alex sighed into her hands and shook her head. " We've been treating Lena's body Like she's under a coma. She's still not breathing on her own, and machines are basically the only thing keeping her alive, even though she's regained full brain function. So if we take her off the life support machines her body will be forced to function on its own. Her body should start kicking into flight mode and start working on its ow-,"

"So we can turn the machines off and she'll wake up and be ok," Kara instantly brightened up, cutting Alex off. 

"Yes, it could but it also could completely backfire. Once we take her off there's nothing else we can do. If she doesn't start functioning on her own, we'll lose her." 

  
  


Kara's face softened briefly and returned to its state of distress. She stopped and began thinking.

  
  


Kelly who had remained quiet finally stepped in. "This is a lot for you to think about. As the person closest to Lena, it's your decision to do what you think is best."

"I'm not- I don't have the power of attorney or anything like that. I- I can't make the decision." 

"You actually are Kar, you're listed as the emergency contact. And it's only you. So it's up to you," Alex said.

"I have to decide whether she lives or dies?" Kara looked up at Alex and she nodded. 

"You've been given a medical opinion and you've been approached with the options now you have to make the decision," Alex said.

  
  


Kara sighed and sighed back into her chair and rested her face into her palms of her hands. 

  
  


It was a few moments of silence. Kara sat and thought, and evaluated her options. Keep Lena hooked up to machines that are taking over her body's function for Rao knows how long, or take her off the machines in  _ hope  _ of her body waking up. The pressure was overwhelming and it didn't help that Kara was the only one who could make the decision. 

  
  


So Kara sat and pondered everything while Kelly and Alex watched her in complete silence. 

  
  


_ Lena wouldn't want this thought _ . Being hooked up to machines for an unmarked amount of time. Lifelessly wasting away, that was not Lena. Lena was a fighter in every sense of the word. Kara would make sure she lived up to that. 

  
  


"Pull the plug," Kara stated 

"Kar are you sure? it's not guaranteed that she'll-," Alex protested instantly. 

"You gave me my options Alex and I've made my choice," Kara said, ignoring her sister's resistance. 

Alex looked over at Kara and sighed "Ok," 

  
  


Lena's life laid in Kara's hands again, and this time she would save her.

  
  


  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grammarly, count your fucking days
> 
> I had to rewrite half of this chapter 3x 
> 
> Keep bringing in the comments i always enjoy them :) (criticism always welcome ofc)
> 
> (Sorry if this was shorter than you would like but i wanted to split it into 2 chapters)


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> well.....   
> I don't eve-

The whistle of the machines.

  
  


The tenseness of the air. 

  
  


It was the small nod from Alex and the final pull of the plug that had Kara holding her breath. She couldn't move and could feel her heart beating out of her chest. All her senses tuned into Lena and nothing else. Because as of right now the person she 

  
  


The breathing tube detached and all machines other than the EKG had been turned off. A crash cart pulled to the side in case it was needed. Kara found its presence trivial, considering Lena wouldn't need it. She was strong, and she would make it. 

  
  


Lena's heart rate began to slow and grow weaker and weaker. The small whine of the machine indicating Lena's flatline buzzed through Kara's head. 

  
  


"Come on, come on. You can do it," Kara whispered to Lena. They waited, the room was tense. As time stretched on, Kara found her chest clenching tighter. 

  
  


Alex jumped and grabbed the crash cart retrieving the paddles. Kara moved back immediately, giving her sister more room to work. 

  
  


"Stand back!" Alex yelled while rubbing the paddles together. Alex ripped Lena's medical gown open, exposing her pale flesh. Kara winced at the bruises that covered Lena's chest. Applying the paddles to Lena's bare skin, she saw her body rise and fall with a thud against the bed. 

  
  


Everyone in the room glared eagerly at the EKG. Still, Lena continued to flatline. All of Kara's Anxieties resurfaced and splashed over her like a wave. Alex recharged the paddles again, pressing them to Lena's chest. Still, she continued to flatline. 

  
  


Kara fell to her knees and sobbed, she should have waited. Maybe had she given Lena a few more days, she would've come out on her own. Alex began compressions and stared anxiously at the EKG. 

  
  


Alex looked over to Kara and gave her a knowing look. Kara could only shake her head in denial. 

  
  


"No" Kara rasped

"Kar, I've been doing CPR for five minutes. We have to let her go," Alex said somberly. 

"NO!" Kara screamed

"Kara I think tha-" Kelly stepped forward

"I said no," Kara replied "Again,"

"Kara I've already shocked her twice I don't thin-"

"I said do it again!" Kara persisted. The fact that everyone was ready to give up infuriated Kara. They didn't know Lena like she did, Lena was a fighter. 

  
  


Alex recharged the paddles and whispered a faint "Clear" and pressed them to Lena's chest. Lena's body rose and fell back against the bed with a thud and Alex stepped back watching the EKG. 

  
  


"Come on Lena, fight," Kara whispered. 

  
  


Maybe Lena heard her.

  
  


Maybe Rao or the other powers that be finally woke their asses up. 

  
  


Or maybe Alex had some powerful hands.

  
  


Kara didn't know and she didn't care. Because when the sound of beeping on the EKG finally hit her, she swore it's like the world around her went silent. Blocking out the sounds around her and listening to the resonance of Lena's heartbeat followed by her breathing and rushing of blood through her veins. 

  
  


The overwhelming feeling of relief flooded over Kara and she drew in a sharp gasp of air. Tears welled in her eyes.

  
  


Lena pulled through. She fought the odds, and she kicked ass.

  
  


**

It hit her all at once. 

  
  


The sounds, the smells, the aching pain that plagued her body. 

  
  


First, it was the smell of alcohol and hand sanitizer. The sounds, the beeping rang through her head along with muffled voices. The voices were familiar, but Lena just couldn't register who they came from. Her body was sore everywhere, and the pulsing in her head was foul. Her mouth felt dry and her throat scratchy. She opened her eyes and winced at the brightness burning into her retinas. 

  
  


The voices continued to get louder and clearer as her vision began to clear. Three figures stood above her staring down at Lena. Lena began to hyperventilate and worry filled her head. She didn't know where she was, or who she was with. 

  
  


One second she was escaping a crumbling reality hand in hand with Kara. Then she was stuck in a world of dark isolation. No sounds, no feelings, just a vast plain of never-ending darkness.

  
  


Now she was here, wherever here was. Laying sore in what seemed to be a hospital. Lena continued to make attempts at opening her eyes but she still winced and groaned catching the attention of the figures above her. 

  
  


"Turn some lights off, would you? We don't want to blind her" One of the voices spoke up while another figure went to turn off a light making it easier for Lena's eye to adjust. 

  
  


Lena's eyes finally cleared and looked up at the ceiling. She sat up eagerly and maybe a little too quickly. Then It all rushed back at her, hitting Lena like a truck.

  
  


She remembered…

  
  


She remembered her penthouse. The icy slap that hit her cheek, glass cup shattering on the floor. Her being hit against the walls of her home. The feeling of his hands around her neck. James' hands restricting her airflow. Then she was in what was her fake reality being let Kara, hand in hand. Then she was left alone in a world of black, putting her on a brink of death.

  
  


Lena pieced her timeline together to the best of her ability. Still the gaps that were blood in her recap worried her. Where was James? She didn't remember leaving her penthouse. She wouldn't keep breaking rules, James wouldn't be happy with that, and she needed to make him happy again. Had she told him where she went, did he know where she was?

  
  


Lena began to panic. James would be upset, she needed to take care of the mess she made. She needed to tell James she was sorry. She could be good. she had to fix it. She had to make it better. 

  
  


"I need to go, I need to make it better," Lena panicked.

"Lena it's ok, he's not here," Kara said, easing her voice in an attempt to calm Lena. 

"No no no," Lena began frantically, "I can be good, I need to tell him I'm sorry"

Lena's heart rate began to increase rapidly and she began to take shorter breaths of air.

"I need you to calm her down Kara," Alex said 

Her eyes widened when she saw Alex, Kara, and Kelly staring down at her.

"Lena?" Kara grabbed Lena's hand gently, "Lena, I need you to calm down ok?" 

"No No I need to go, I need to-" Lena said frantically.

"Lena, Listen to me," Kara spoke softly, " James isn't here, he can't hurt you anymore, your ok"

Lena looked up at kara, deep into her eyes. Kara wouldn't lie to her, and she knew that. "But wha-"

"I won't let him hurt you," Kara said firmly as she stroked the side of Lena’s face.

"But we were leaving, and I was holding your hand. The- then you were gone, and I was alone," Lena whispered

"I know, something went wrong and you got stuck. But it's ok, we got you out, and you're here now..." Kara trapped Lena's hand between her own and held them tightly as if she blinked Lena would disappear. "And that's all that matters."

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know what comes next COMMENT SOMETHING 
> 
> anyway, I hope yall are happy healthy and safe. :)


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> all facts or statistics found in this chapter have been researched 
> 
> sources:  
> https://ncadv.org/statistics  
> https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/188564.pdf

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't do much proofreading so I'm sorry if its trash
> 
> My instagram is @yourwifejazzy if you guys want to follow me or DM me abt the story or anything else ❤️

(TW: MENTIONS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE)

Lena kept her gaze glued to the floor and only made brief eye contact with Alex when she was spoken too. Kara thought about what Kelly said, and a pang hit her chest. She didn't know how bad or for how long it was that James had been doing this to her. It hurt to know that Lena could be walking home to who knows what after having a joyful lunch with kara. Or any phone calls they had that seemed to end with love and positivity but on the other end, Lena was at the wrath of James. It was a constant reminder to Kara that she had not only failed to save Lena but failed to protect her as well. She could and would never let herself go for that. 

  
  


It was well into the night now and the commotion in the DEO had settled down. The night shift agents had arrived, but there were significantly fewer sounds and movements. 

  
  


Lena hadn't spoken much other than a few words and hums of affirmation to Alex. Kara couldn't work up the courage to look Lena in the eye, or even speak to her. Not only was the guilt weighing on her, but the experience inside Lena’s mind was- shocking,

to say the least.

Kara and Kelly waited outside of the med bay while Alex examined Lena and ran a few tests. Kara wanted to be right by Lena's side, but she could tell Alex wouldn't be tolerating any protest, and she didn't want to stress Lena out. 

  
  


Kara stared through the glass at Lena, who sat on the bed being poked and prodded by her sister. She was honestly hesitant towards the idea of facing Lena as much as she hated to admit it.

  
  


Lena probably hated her, She had every right to. She was alone and abandoned twice. Kara had no idea what it was like for her while she was coding. Or what it had been like in that room when James-. She didn't want to think about it, the fear and helplessness she would have felt. 

  
  


Kelly looked over at Kara and could see the pain and guilt written on her face. She knew that she was probably beating herself up about everything. It made Kelly feel equal as guilty and responsible for not being able to prevent this. The fact that her own brother did this made her sick to her stomach. She hated herself, the fact that Kara forgave her didn't make her feel any better either. 

  
  


"I'm sorry," She blurted out 

"Wha- Kelly I told you you have nothing to apologize for. This wasn't your fault, you don't need to blame yourself,"

"No, except I do need to apologize kara. I could've done more. I should have been around more than maybe he- then maybe James wouldn't-" Kelly paused " I need to take responsibility for what my carelessness and obliviousness caused. I'm so sorry. Again, if you never want to see or speak to me again I would understand-" 

"Woah Woah" Kara interrupted "I don't want you to disappear. I couldn't do that to you or Alex, that's not fair. Your apology really isn't needed, but if it makes you feel better I accept it." Kara offered a small smile.

"Thank you, It means a lot," Kelly smiled back.

  
  


Kelly looked down at the ground, she hoped the conversation didn't travel any further than its topic. Kelly really didn't want to talk about her brother or how it went at the precinct. Honestly, she was just tired and angry but mostly sad. She hadn't slept much while she was home. 

  
  


"You should go home, get some sleep." Kara said "No offense but you look terrible."

"None taken, I probably should get back home and rest, but I don't think I could if I wanted to. Also, there's something I wanted to bring up first"

  
  


Kara nodded, held her breath, and not her head. Learning from future experience, that line usually didn't follow good news.

  
  


"Lena's going to need help getting back to her um old self. Domestic violence victims have trouble trusting and getting back to the life they once had," Kelly explained " Considering how bad Jam- he left her, and her reaction to his absence when she woke up, she's going to need a lot of help. " 

"How bad do you think it will be, she'll get better though right?" Kara asked

"Honestly we can't know what it will be like until we talk to her. Lena has been through a lot and this- we don't know what this would do to her. Every victim is different, but all I can truly say is she's going to need help. We can't predict how it will be. It will be hard in the beginning. She'll need someone, a shoulder to lean on."

  
  


Kara heard the guilt and blame in Kelly's voice. She knew no matter how many times she was told it wasn't her fault she would always blame herself. Kara hated that she felt that way, and hated even more that it was James who put her in this position. Who knew if Kelly could ever forgive herself. 

  
  


It was easier for Kara to place herself in her shoes because Kara couldn't bring herself to the realization that it wasn't her fault either. 

  
  


"I'll be there for her, whenever and for whatever" Kara stated 

"I don't doubt that you will, but Lena is going to need to go through some therapy-" 

"I don't think she'll agree to that, you know how private she is," Kara said

"Well, I'm afraid she probably won't have a choice, when the trial begins it would probably be mandatory. I think in her case, that would be best," Kara could only nod, "I have many friends and know some of the best people that could help her out so just say the word and I'll send you a list," Kelly suggested earnestly 

"Thank you, so much for everything, really," Kara said thoughtfully 

Kelly offered a small smile "It's the least I could do," 

  
  


Kara returned her attention to her the med bay where Lena sat baselessly. It wasn't until Alex pulled out a form and presented Lena with a camera that things went south. 

  
  


Lena's eyes widened and she began going somewhat hysterical. The shouting of defiance that came from Lena's voice radiated through the area. "No, No I don't want to. I'm fine we don't need to"

  
  


Kelly and Kara exchanged worried glances.

  
  


Lena began moving backward further onto the bed and away from Alex. Alex only took a small step closer to Lena softly speaking to her and showing her the form. The camera had now been set down, but Lena kept her eyes glued to it. With her knees drawn to her chest she continued to shake her head.

  
  


Kara saw Alex's face soften and she set down the clipboard the papers were attached to. She walked over to Lena and placed a hand on her shoulder and said something to Lena. Due to not being in the room, neither of the women could hear what Alex had said. Kara resisted her urge to use her super hearing with respect for Lena. 

  
  


Alex seemed to ask Lena a question, to which Lena offered a small nod in response. Alex said one last thing to Lena before leaving the med bay to approach them.

  
  


"She won't take the pictures, she doesn't want to press charges," Alex said, her voice low and quiet.

"She wha- why the hell not?" Kara said in a whisper yell. 

"Well, this isn't a rare thing Kara, about 85% of victims either drop charges or don't press charges at all for a number of reasons." Kelly said " Sometimes out of fear or they don't actually believe their partner has done anything wrong. The forms of psychological abuse. The common  _ I do it because I love you  _ becomes a mantra. It's said so often to the point where the victims start to believe it. They don't see it as abuse, they see it as love that only that person can provide"

  
  


Kara sighed and shook her head. Of course with Lena's childhood, she was probably more susceptible to this kind of tactic. 

  
  


"But I asked if she wanted to see someone. More specifically you Kar" Alex said.

  
  


Kara's head snapped upward, and her eyes widened in amazement. 

  
  


"Are you sure- she asked for me? specifically?!" 

"Yes fool, so are you going to go in there or not?" Alex rolled her eyes

"I don't know, Kelly has more experience with this. I don't want to say or do anything that could potentially set her off. I don't want to make anything worse." Kara rambled

"Kara, she asked for you. Don't worry, just be yourself. Be cautious, don't make her feel pressured." Kelly consoled 

  
  


Kara nodded and began taking tentative steps into the med bay. The idea that Lena even wanted to talk to her made Kara feel somewhat relieved. Still, she still couldn't help but be a little hesitant even though she wanted so much to be with Lena. 

  
  


So there she was sitting next to Lena. She wanted to say everything and anything to take Lena's pain away. She wanted to hold Lena closely and let her know that it would be ok. But of course, she couldn't do that.

  
  


As Kara struggled to find the word Lena adjusted to the newfound presence beside her. Before a complete sentence could form in Kara's brain, Lena spoke up.

  
  


"I'm scared," Lena admitted "I'm so so scared Kara,"

  
  


Kara observed Lena's face closely for the first time since she woke up. All signs of fear and distress were written clearly across her skin, in her eyes, in her voice. The look of pure fear and worry in her eyes broke Kara. 

  
  


"He- He was so mad and I tried to say I was sorry I tried to make everything right and he was just so mad." Lena continued and Kara just listened "He just kept getting angrier, it's all my fault. I should've listened, now he will leave. He was the last and only person who could love me."

  
  


Kara moved closer to Lena on the bed and pulled her into her arms. Wrapping her in a soft embrace pouring every ounce of love into it. She had a short pang of panic when she felt Lena stiffen, but it soon washed over when she relaxed into Kara's arms with a soft sigh. Lena's head leaning firmly into Kara's chest. 

  
  


"Do you remember what I told you when we were in your fantasy?" 

  
  


Lena stayed silent and motionless, and only faint sobs escaped her. Silent tears escaped her and began to dampen her medical gown.

  
  


_ "I'll make sure you are loved, and that you know what real love is."  _ Kara recited her words quietly against Lena's dark tresses. "I intend to keep that promise. What James did, what he has been doing is not love. Not in any sense of the word."

"But it's just something we need to work on, we can go to couples therapy. He can work on his anger, and I can just keep him away from the alcohol. Then we can fix it, we can make it work," Lena stammered out her plea.

"Lena as much as you want him to change you know it won't happen. I know you want to see the good in him, but for your safety and wellbeing, you can't go back to him. I can't let him hurt you again." Kara confessed

"But he can come back, he can find me. He will always be there," Lena said 

"He is already in custody. We just need Alex to complete documentation and collect your statement. We can begin building a case against him and put him away." 

"I- I can't do it, Kara"

"I know that it's scary, and I can't possibly imagine how hard it is. I can't promise that it will make everything go away. But at least we know that then he won't be able to hurt you ever again." Kara began, "You have been through so much, and I know this may just seem like another tragedy in the life of Lena Luthor. You can get through this, I will be there, with you, Alex and Kelly will be there with you. Every step of the way, you will have someone to support you, no matter what."

Kara looked up with the eyes that could see through Kara's soul " You promise?" 

"I would never lie to you," Kara said with a soft smile 

"Yea right Kara, or should I say supergirl" Lena joked with a small laugh. It was so good to hear that sound again. Like music to her ears, it was a sound Kara would never get tired of hearing.

"Oh haha, you got me" Kara gave a small chuckle 

  
  


They sat there for a moment in comfortable silence with the warmth of their bodies surrounding them. 

  
  


"Ok" Lena spoke finally 

"Ok?" Kara asked 

"I'll do it, I'll press charges" Lena whispered

"Thank you, I'm so proud of you Lena"

  
  


Lena's breath caught in her throat. Nobody had said those words to her. Nobody had ever taken the time to appreciate her efforts. But it was the way Kara said it that made her feel like she was floating on air.

  
  


Kara was proud of her, and that's all she needed.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope yall enjoyed this chapter and i cant wait to read responses in the comments :)
> 
> I've been doing a lot of research on domestic violence to help with the writing and the information that I've retained about the documentation of abuse cases and their contribution to cases is astronomically disappointing and I get very angry and upset reading them I urge you to do some reading of your own to help educate yourself because VICTIMS DESERVE BETTER
> 
> any gimme comments :)
> 
> DOMESTIC ABUSE HOTLINES  
> 1-800-799-7233  
> 1-800-787-3224 (TTY)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> IDK if this chapter is actually long or it's just too much dialogue but enjoy 
> 
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT because I love them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> instagram: @yourwifejazzy

It was well into the night almost morning now. Pictures were documented, papers were signed, and tests were taken. Lena was recovering well, and her brain function was normal. Lena was set to go home and was supposed to return for a follow-up examination in a couple of days. Lena sat on the medical bed with obvious hesitation, visible fear in her eyes. 

  
  


Lena didn't want to go home. Lena was scared of going home. 

  
  


Kara sat next to Lena silently, watching, waiting for her to say something. 

  
  


But Lena just sat, waiting for Alex to return with her belongings. Lena sat gripping the sheets of the medical bed still in the pale blue gown. Staring deeply into the blank space of the DEO walls. Shallow breaths and small shudders radiated from her body. 

"Lena?" Kara whispered. Lena continued gripping the sheets and staring at the walls. Kara moved slowly towards Lena, placing a hand on her atop of Lena's. Lena snapped out of her trance and focused her gaze on Kara. 

"I'm here, ok?" Kara reassured her

  
  


Lena just nodded.

  
  


Alex returned with Lena's belongings, with Kelly right behind her. 

  
  


In the bag Lena's clothes, ripped and torn. She held the bag in her hand and stared. Alex handed her a matching pair of grey sweats and a shirt. 

  
  


"It's not the best, but I don't think a hospital gown made a good outfit," Alex said, in a stale attempt to lighten the mood. Lena offered a smile and thanked Alex for her efforts.

  
  


Kelly remained in the far corner of the room silently standing by. 

***

Alex had been called away to some non-supergirl DEO emergency, while Kelly had to return to work.

  
  


Lena had no way of getting home, so Kara offered to fly her. Knowing Lena's fear of heights, this probably wasn't the best choice. 

  
  


"If you don't want to, we can call your driver to pick you up"

"No, No I couldn't bother him at such a late hour. If we have to fly, then we'll have to make it work." Lena sighed.

  
  


walking out to the balcony the cold midnight air attacked Lena's skin. She shivered and held her arms close to her chest. Kara stepped in close and wrapped her cape around Lena. Faces inches apart, Kara tucked Lena in the cape. warm breaths tickled faces under the glow of the moon. 

  
  


"Better?" Kara smiled. 

"Much, Thank you" Lena nodded with a small smile 

  
  


Kara pulled Lena into a bridal carry and pulled her close to her chest. Lena tensed at the sudden shift clinging tightly. 

  
  


"I got you alright, just close your eyes and I'll be quick," Kara promised. Lena only nodded against Kara's chest. Kara slowly ascended from the ground, holding Lena close to her chest.

  
  


Kara made a straight path to Lena's penthouse. She hadn't discussed it with Lena when they were at the DEO, but Kara didn't want to leave Lena alone. The look of constant fear in her face was too much to leave her to deal with on her own. She promised that she would be there, and she intended to keep that promise. 

  
  


When Kara finally descended onto the surface of Lena's balcony, she paused. The crunch of glass under her feet and the official police tape crossing of the entrance caused her to stagger. 

  
  


The NCPD had been here, but they obviously hadn't had it cleaned up. Kara mentally slapped herself and cursed the idiots who left the mess. 

  
  


"Negligent idiots, " Kara whispered. 

Lena looked up at Kara "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just- there's still a mess. The NCPD was supposed to clean up but-" Kara paused "You can't stay here, I'll take you to my place"

"I appreciate the thought Kara, but I can stay at a hotel," Lena protested 

"It was an offer, Lena. I made you a promise, I intend to keep it."

  
  


Lena sensed the annoyance already caused by the NCPD, and decided not to push. She wouldn't admit it of course, but she didn't want to be alone. Certainly not in her own home at least. So they headed back in the opposite direction towards Kara’s loft. 

***

  
  


Lena sat on Kara's couch facing the television. Lena refused to eat after the multiple pleading offers Kara had made. But Lena just couldn't find herself with an appetite.

  
  


Kara had turned it on to create some sound. Something to fill the air that had previously been filled with deafening silence. The characters on the screen spoke and shouted, commercials played catchy tunes. Lena didn't listen to any of it. She knew she was safe. Well, she wanted to think she was safe, she wanted to feel safe. She just couldn't shake the feeling that James would burst in demanding her to come home. She would have no choice to return, and meet her fate. 

  
  


Kara was sure Lena was tired. After the hours of tests and documenting of Lena's experience, also given that it was about 1:30 in the morning. Lena had to be exhausted, but she hadn't even lied down since she floated into Kara's loft. 

  
  


Lena's face returned to the same blank stare that she had at the DEO. She felt a little safer being close to Kara and having her around, but Lena would still feel fear. 

  
  


Kara glanced over from the opposite corner of the couch. Lena was again gripping tightly onto the cushions. staring out of the window, not nearly as shaken as she was before. 

  
  


"Lena?" Lena looked over to Kara.

  
  


Kara scooted closer to Lena and placed a hand on Lena's whose knuckles were turning white. She had been gripping the couch so tightly, she thought it would tear apart. 

  
  


"He can't get you anymore ok? I'll protect you" Kara whispered. 

"I know, it's just- I keep expecting him to call me and demand me to come home. I would have no choice but to go home, or he would come to find me. I would take the blame and face the consequences of whatever rules I broke to make him upset. He would probably be drinking and-" Lena paused as her voice began to quiver with tears that threatened to spill. Kara just sat and listened, taking in every word. "He would be so angry, so angry with me and whatever rule I broke. No matter how many times I apologized, said I was sorry, he would still-," Lena began breaking out into sobs releasing her grip on the couch. 

"Oh Lena, I'm so sorry," Kara found her voice shaking with every word. Kara pulled Lena to her chest and found they found themselves in the same position as before. Lena wrapped in Kara's arms tightly, her head against Kara's chest. Kara felt her shirt growing wetter with Lena's spilled tears, but she couldn't bring herself care. 

"Then I would clean up whatever mess that was made. Shower and clean myself up." Lena paused. Kara held Lena close and placed loving caresses on her skin. " Of course the punches and the slaps, they hurt, badly. But what hurts worse is what came after. He would start sobering up, sometimes he would hug me, kiss me, or anything else like nothing happened. He would tell me that he loved me, and he did it because of his love. " 

Lena offered a pained laugh " I believed it, I thought he loved me. I let him do what he wanted to me. I took his punches, slaps, the spewing of the insults. I let him break me down in a constant repetition of the same behavior. Just so I could get empty  _ I love you's  _ and fake kisses. How pathetic am I? I fed into it, I played it off as normal," 

  
  


Lena blamed herself, she thought everything was her fault. The word she repeated over and over she  _ let  _ him do this to her. 

Fuck every single abuse out there who hurt defenseless innocent people.

**(On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.)**

Fuck the system that fails to protect the victims.

**(Less than 2% of abusers ever receive any jail time.** )

and fuck James for making Lena feel this way, for doing this to her. 

"Lena look at me," Kara said 

Lena separated herself to look Kara in the eyes. Kara leaned forward brushing Lena's tresses behind her ear. She placed one hand on Lena's left cheek. "This is not your fault, you were put in a position where you were left defenseless while someone took advantage of you and hurt you. None of this is your fault," Kara spoke softly. 

  
  


Lena could only let a single tear fall. Kara's touch was soft and loving, Lena melted into the touch. She nodded softly against Kara's palm and sighed. Kara wiped Lena's tear that trailed across her cheek. Lena fell back into Kara’s chest and dozed off with gentle snores.

***

Kara held Lena closely and waited for a few moments as Lena's breaths slowed. Kara lifted her into a bridal carry with Lena's head firm against her chest. Floating through her apartment to her bedroom, placing Lena softly against the bed and tucking her in. She began leaning closely to Lena's face and was about to place a soft kiss to her forehead, almost involuntarily. Kara caught herself when her face was centimeters away. She could smell the soft lavender scent in Lena's hair.

  
  


Then Kara's thoughts invaded her.  _ Stop it, Kara. Now is not the time for feelings. You can't take advantage of her, you can't do that to her. And stop smelling her hair weirdo.  _ Kara immediately pulled her face away from Lena's and moved to lay on the opposite side of the bed. Kara made sure Lena had plenty of space. Not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable or violated.

  
  


Kara shut off all the lights, and returned to her bed. Kara laid face up staring up at the ceiling. Her super hearing scanned the city for any trouble. All things considered, Kara was glad that the villains and criminals had taken a break for a while so she could focus on more important things. Kara glanced over Lena who was snoring softly. Kara couldn't help but admire how peaceful she looked after everything. 

  
  


Kara laid awake with her thoughts swarming in her head. She was thinking about everything and anything. But she couldn't bring herself to focus on one thing at a time. 

  
  


The fact that Lex and Lillian had been awol was nowhere near as comforting as it should be. She hadn't been working with the DEO lately as she focused all her attention on Lena. She hadn't been at work for the last few days either. The media had probably noticed the disappearance of Lcorp's CEO. 

  
  


As of right now, all she cared about was Lena. Lena was safe and resting next to her, so breathing came easier now. Everything else could wait, all that mattered was Lena. 

  
  


Kara focused back on reality when she felt Lena start shuffling in her spot next to her. Lena tossed and turned in the spot next to her and murmured inaudibly. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to" Lena mumbled.

Lena sat up quickly grasping the side of her face. She began breathing quickly and her eyes bounced from wall to wall. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She screamed.

Kara grabbed Lena's hands, "Hey, it's ok. I'm here, you're safe."

  
  


Lena continued hyperventilating, she couldn't focus. Her panic attack made her chest feel heavy, and the fear was blinding her from anything else. She felt the weight shift in her hands and looked at the face attached to them.

  
  


"Can you breathe with me?" Kara's voice only sounded far away to Lena. Kara placed Lena's hand on her chest and took deep breaths. "In and out, ok, you can do it"

  
  


Lena felt Kara's chest rise and fall, breathing, she needed to control that. So she mimicked Kara's movements and started slowing her breathing. Looking into Kara's eyes Lena began to center herself. She heard Kara's voice become clearer as her breath began to slow, and her vision became focused. 

  
  


Kara watched as Lena stilled, and her breathing relaxed, and green eyes met blue. She pulled Lena's hands into hers and ran her thumb over her knuckles. "What happened?" Kara asked

"Nothing just a nightmare, I'm sorry I woke you," Lena murmured shifting her gaze. 

"It's fine, I couldn't sleep," Kara said. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Lena shook her head, "No, not right now," Lena whispered. 

  
  


Kara didn't want to push. If  _ not right now,  _ was the best she could get she would take it. Lena didn't want to talk now, but she did want to talk about it later.

  
  


"That's fine, you think you can get back to sleep?" 

  
  


Lena offered a small nod in response and laid her head back against the pillow. Kara returned to the same position of staring straight into the ceiling when she felt Lena turn and face her. 

  
  


"Kara?" Lena whispered through the darkness. 

"Yes?" 

"Could you um-, could you-, nevermind," Lena's voice was so faint and fragile that Kara was sure it probably couldn't have been heard by the naked ear. 

"It's alright, what do you need?" 

Lena stayed quiet for a moment, uncertainty radiating off of her. "Could you hold me? I think it would help me sleep better," Lena paused, "But if you think that's too weird, or it's too much it's fine. I mean, I already invaded your bed so-,"

"It's fine Lena, come here" Lena shuffled closer to Kara, and she found herself wrapped in Kara's arms once again. It was a comforting feeling, with a sense of belonging and comfort. "Don't be afraid to ask for whatever it is that you need, anything that could make you feel better, even in the slightest."

  
  


Lena nodded against Kara's chest. Lena fell asleep in Kara's arms and Kara found herself falling asleep to the sound of Lena's heartbeat. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm getting my computer on the 20th :)   
> I think something went wrong but I could've sworn I was only chapter 12...
> 
> sources for facts in this chapter:  
> https://www.focusforhealth.org/the-role-of-patriarchy-in-domestic-violence/


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter :)  
> also guess who I brought in :)  
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry I didn't upload last week, take this long ass chapter as a peace offering <3
> 
> instagram: @yourwifejazzy  
> ^follow so I can interact with u all :)^

“So tell me Kiera, why are you requesting time off? Please don't tell me you're pregnant,” Cat spoke through the phone.

"No Ms.Grant, I’m not pregnant,” A sigh of relief came through the phone, “I just need to take care of some things,"

"So these  _ things _ , would they have anything to do with the disappearance of the L-corps CEO and the arrest of Mr.Olsen?" Cat pushed.

  
  


Kara could only sigh. Knowing that Lena and James' relationship was public, the media had probably picked up on it by now. 

  
  


"Miss.Grant you know I would never-"

"I'm not looking for a story, just a confirmation. I'm not heartless Kiera, I know this may be hard for you to believe, but I do  _ actually _ care about people." 

Kara chuckled softly "Yes yes I know,"

"You'll be expected to complete any assignments from home and have them sent to Mr.Carr by each deadline."

"Ok, thank you so much Ms.Grant, I'll make it work," Kara's smile could be heard through the screen. 

"I don't doubt that you will, send Ms.Luthor my regards," 

  
  


Kara ended the call and sighed with satisfaction. Kara immediately opened her news app, and sure enough, the headlines were as expected. Everyone wondered where Lena was and what her disappearance had to do with James' arrest. As much as Kara wished she could control the story from the inside, Lena came first. With her request for time off was accepted, she could focus on the important things. 

  
  


Kara glanced into her bedroom, where she saw Lena resting peacefully on her bed. Soft snores could be heard from the kitchen. She had woken up to Lena curled up against her chest that morning with her hands fisted into Kara's shirt. Relief settled in her chest at the memory of how peaceful Lena finally looked.

  
  


Kara smiled softly to herself and decided to start breakfast, Lena would be hungry since she hadn't eaten in hours. Kara moved through the kitchen swiftly and quietly. Cracking eggs and making toast as efficiently as possible and managing not to burn the place down. Kara was satisfied with her work laid out on the table. The faint rustles of bedding followed by small footsteps alerted Kara to Lena's wake. 

  
  


"G' morning" Kara offered ", I don't know exactly what you like, and I figure you would want something healthy because you're…. you. So I made toast, eggs, and bacon. I also made coffee, but there's orange juice if you want that instead. But if you don't want the toast, I can make something else. Or I can go out and get something-," Kara rambled on about the breakfast option, and Lena just stood before her, getting lost in her words. 

  
  


Other people would probably find this annoying, the way she could talk on and on about one insignificant thing such as breakfast. Other people who didn't know Kara the way Lena did. But Lena found it absolutely adorable. As someone who read and listened to numbers and scientific equations all day, it felt comforting to hear every detail of something that didn't involve life-changing technology. 

  
  


"Kara...," Lena began. 

"No, No, No, before you say anything, it's  _ truly _ no problem at all. In fact, I would fly to France right now to get those little scone things you like, and it would take little to no time," Kara continued.

"Kara...,"

"So just say the word, and I'll get whatever you nee-," Kara finished. 

"Kara?" Lena said again.

"Sorry, um, yes?" 

"Thank you for breakfast, really, and the toast is fine, perfect even, along with the coffee. Although I appreciate the thought, I don't need you to fly across oceans for my food." Lena smiled 

"Well ok, but truly anything you need," Kara urged

"I'll be sure to let you know, but I just would like to eat now if that's ok," 

"Yeah, of course," Kara replied 

  
  


They ate breakfast in comfortable silence. Kara stole small glances occasionally as Lena sipped her coffee and nibbled at her food. The only sounds bouncing off the walls were the scrapes of forks against plates and the soft slurping of coffee. 

  
  


Lena sat and picked at her food. She ate because she was hungry, yes. But mostly she did it, so Kara didn't have to put any more effort into her. She didn't want to take up more space than she already did. Staying in her home, eating her food, sleeping in her bed. 

  
  


Kara finally broke the silence, "Would you like to talk about last night?" She asked. Those blue eyes stared right at her. Looking right through Lena, reading her, trying to memorize every part of her. It made Lena feel naked, exposed but in the most comforting kind of way. 

  
  


Lena froze. 

  
  


Oh god, last night _. "Could you hold me?" _ Lena's small voice mocked her in her head. She had done everything but asked Kara to cradle her like a baby until she fell asleep. This was the type of thing James always told her about, embarrassing herself. Making herself into a fool and embarrassing him. 

  
  


Lena immediately dipped her head and focused her gaze onto her plate. "I- I'm- sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I was just having a hard time sleeping, and you're really just-. It was stupid I'm sorry, I didn't mean to mess it up, I- I- I'm sorry," Lena's knee began bouncing erratically as she rambled on apologies. 

Kara's heart flattened, "Lena no, you didn't mess anything up. I'm not upset with you, you needed comfort, and I gave it to you willingly." Lena peered up at Kara through long lashes. "I don't ever want you to feel like you can't ask me for whatever you need. Even if it's something as small as holding you while you sleep, ok?" 

Lena nodded in response. 

" Now, what I was referring to was your nightmare. You said you would talk about it later," Kara continued. 

"Yeah, um, I just had a bad dream." Lena paused, " I was with Lex, and he kept telling me how disappointed he was with me. He said it was embarrassing to see a Luthor part of such a degrading scandal. He said that I should be ashamed of myself for putting myself in this situation. I should have been smarter." 

Kara instantly pulled Lena into a tight hug, almost falling out of her chair in the process. Lena was thankful for the contact. When she was in Kara's arms, it was like the rest of the world fell away. 

***

Kara and Lena finished their breakfast, and Lena went to shower. Changing into some clothes Kara had given her, she noticed how they hung off her loosely. Damp hair pulled into a bun, with Kara's sweatpants and Midvale high hanging off her body. Because of the obvious size difference, her clothes were baggy on Lena, making her look smaller than usual. Lena's bruises had begun to fade, and she almost looked like her old self again.

  
  


_ almost _

  
  


"I forget how small you are without your 12inch stilettos," Kara commented as she watched Lena walk into the living room. 

"Oh shut up, I am not that small. You're only like two inches taller than me." Lena rolled her eyes. 

  
  


Kara loved how Lena could be so open and vulnerable even when she was hesitant to do so, and they could still be best friends at the end of the day. Nothing would change. If anything, they got closer. Together they were still the dork and the nerd.

  
  


Kara offered to turn on the TV to create some noise while she went to shower. So Lena lounged on the couch while Kara disappeared into the bathroom.

  
  


Kara emerged out of the bedroom and peered into the living room where Lena sat glued to the television. James face plastered on the Television with Lena's right beside it.  **_Missing Luthor and felon Olsen_ ** _?  _ the headline read. 

  
  


Lena had returned to the same position as the night before. Staring, almost emptily into the screen, at James' face. Her grip on the couch was tight and firm. Her jaw clenched tightly, and her heart pulsed erratically. 

  
  


_ "Its been about four days since we've last seen the CEO of L-Corp, Lena Luthor. NCPD officers were seen entering the Luthors penthouse only two days ago, before the arrest of Cat co's star photographer and boyfriend, James Olsen.People can't help but wonder, ``Is Lena Luthor dead, kidnapped, or just plain out missing, and what is the connection between her disappearance and Mr.Olsens arrest?"  _ The reporter spoke. 

Kara eased into the spot next to Lena, "He can't get to you, and I won't let him." 

Lena's heartbeat began to slow, and she looked at Kara. She gave a small smile. "He can't get me," she repeated. Then it was like a switch flipped inside Lena, and she snapped out of her trance. She practically jumped off the couch and started moving around rapidly, searching. 

"They're right, I need to get back to work. L-Corp is probably floundering without me," 

"Lena, you need to rest, you need time. L-Corp is fine, your board sent in one of the backup CFO people, and Jess had to take on a little mo-," Kara began. 

"Oh god Jess, she's probably stressed out of her mind. Damn it, I need to be there," Lena immediately got up and started rushing around the apartment. "I need to go, I need to get things in order," 

"Lena sit down, breathe," Kara placed her hands firmly on Lena's shoulders. "L-Corp is fine, Jess is taking on more work, yes, but it's nothing she can't handle. L-Corp hasn't burned down yet, so it's fine." Kara began, "They may not be as good as you, but they're getting the job done,"

  
  


Lena slowed her breathing and gave a small nod. Kara gave a side glance back over to the couch. 

  
  


"Right, sitting down now," 

  
  


Kara changed the channel to something on PBS. The Antique Roadshow, a woman with an old doll that she thought was probably worth thousands that only turned out to be $50. Lena could only chuckle at the turnout, and Kara admired the way the corner of her eyes crinkled when she did so. 

  
  


When Lena laughed, even at something small, Kara relished at the sound. The way her dimples showed when she would duck her head to hide her face. Everything about Lena was beautiful, But somehow, James couldn't see that. But that didn't matter now, Lena was moving forward. That small chuckle showed Kara how strong she was. 

***

Earlier that evening, Alex called. 

_ "Hey, sis, how are you doing?" _

_ "Fine, I'm fine," _

_ "And Lena?" _

_ "She's um better, I think. She gets a little shaken up whenever he's mentioned, but baby steps," Kara paused, "I couldn't take her home last night, since her apartment isn't clean yet,"  _

_ "Shit, those idiots. Sorry, I'll get a team on it asap," Alex rubbed her forehead in annoyance.  _

_ "I really didn't want to leave her alone anyway, so it worked out, I guess."  _

_ "So has Kelly said anything about James?"  _

_ "She hasn't talked to me about it yet. Every time I try to bring it up, she brushes it off and changes the subject. Work was shitty for her today too. Some reporters trying to hassle her about James' connection to Lena. So she's taking some time off. She came home and practically passed out in our room. I don't want her to feel like I'm all over her too. she needs to breathe. We all do, Lena especially. " _

_ "Gosh, that's terrible, I'm sorry Alex."  _

_ "It's not your fault. Kelly mentioned Lena going to therapy and stuff have you talked to her about it. I think that would be a good idea before, ya know, the trial starts and everything," _

_ "No, I haven't really gotten around to it," Kara sighed  _

_ "Well, I think you should," _

_ "Yeah, I should"  _

_ "Kay, let me know how it goes." Alex paused "Kelly's awake, talk to you later"  _

_ "Bye," _

  
  


And the call ended.

  
  


Later that evening, with a lunch of Big Belly burger, Lena's special request caught Kara by surprise. It wasn't often Lena requested something that wasn't Kale. When she did eat anything unhealthy, it was mostly just to please Kara, and she knew that. She often felt guilty for it even, but Lena secretly enjoyed it. So maybe Kara was just somewhat of an excuse. 

  
  


So now she sat in front of Lena, who was quietly munching on her fries. Lena glimpsed over to Kara, staring emptily at her three burgers. She was obviously deep in thought but was biting her tongue, trying not to voice them.

  
  


"Go ahead," Lena said 

"What?" Kara faked obliviousness 

"You haven't touched your food, which is the main red flag." Lena smiled, "You're also a very loud thinker, so whatever it is, just ask me."

  
  


Kara sat mouth agape across from Lena. She quirked her eyebrow back, and Kara just sighed. Of course, Lena saw right through her. That damn eyebrow.

  
  


"Therapy," Kara blurted. Taken aback by the sudden outburst, she looked at Lena.

"What?" Lena knew exactly where this was going. She didn't like it, not at all.

  
  


"Well, since you agreed, a case is being built against James," Kara started, "And you as the victim are going to have to testi-," 

"I know how the law works Kara, and I'm not a fucking victim. Say what you're trying to say," Lena uttered.

  
  


_ Denial... _

  
  


Kara stared at Lena for a few short seconds, the unreadable expression on her face made her swallow hard. Her tone, well… it made her shiver slightly. 

  
  


“Therapy would get you to a point where you could emotionally ready for the trial and everything that would come with it-,” 

  
  


"I'm not going to sit and gush out my problems to someone who would probably sell them to the first reporters who's willing to get an inside scoop on my life. I don't need to wake up to headlines, _ "Lena Luthor and the man who finally broke her,"  _ She pushed back. "I'm a public figure Kara, The sister of a maniacal psychopath who tried to kill the world's heroes. I work my ass off, just to prove that I'm a good person. Still, people believe that I'm just like my family. No matter what I do. Do you think that people hearing my story is going to soften them? Make them care?!" 

"Lena I-," Kara started, but she didn't know what to say. She couldn't find the words to undo or fix what she started. No amounts of hugs or words of care could take away what happened. 

"But now I'll just be Lena Luthor, the sister of the maniacal psychopath who couldn't even protect herself from her own boyfriend!" Lena shouted, "So please, Kara, I'm begging you. Just leave it alone. I don't need anyone to care," Lena wallowed

"But I do care, Lena, I'm not going to leave you alone, no matter how hard you push me away. I can't tell you that everyone is going to care. I can't tell you that it will change the way people see you. But if you go into that courtroom and you see him, and he gets a reaction out of you, he wins. He will know that no matter what, he will always have some power over you." Kara took Lena's hands into her own, "You are so strong Lena, but to be able to get back to your life, the life you had before James, you're gonna need help. You can't do it alone, I won't let you."

"I don't know, I can't talk to people. It's hard, I can't just open up. Sometimes my own stubbornness gets the best of me. I become difficult even when I don't mean to be. I don't want to put the mess of my life into someone else's hands. "

"I know, it will take time, but you can try," Lena looked at Kara. Like, really looked at her. "Just think about it, please," 

Lena nodded, "Fine" 

***

The day was spent doing practically nothing, Just the two women savoring each other's company. Kara went to retrieve some of Lena's things. Letting Lena know that it might be a while before her place was ready. Since a case was building against James, the combing through of the place had to be thorough. Not knowing how long she would stay for, Kara grabbed enough of her belongings that could fit into a large duffle bag. 

  
  


They laid in bed again staring into space, trying to evade sleep for as long as she could. Scared of whatever nightmare would terrorize her tonight. 

  
  


"I could still sleep on the couch, I didn't really ask if you wanted to share a bed last time. You kind of just fell asleep so...," Kara whispered through the darkness 

"No," Lena answered a little too quickly, "Its fine,"

"Ok"

The feeling of Kara lying beside her was familiar. It made her feel safe, protected, and comfortable. It took her back to her false reality when she woke up next to Kara. It was a familiar sensation that she wished she could’ve spent more time relishing. 

  
  


Kara was there. She saw Lena, She saw her life with, well... Kara. Married together, snuggling on the couch together. Kara saw one of the most vulnerable parts of her mind, her desires. It made her feel naked in her presence like every one of her defenses had been stripped down. Lena had not taken much time to think about what it had meant. Or the fact that Kara had not brought it up since she woke up.

  
  


Maybe her brain took her closest relationship and applied it to what she needed at that time, comfort. Yeah that made sense, Kara’s presence was a form of comfort. Lena was a realist, and that concept appealed to her realist ideals, so she stuck with it. Kara was her friend, her best friend, she couldn't afford to mess that up with false notions of what could be. Even if a small part of her that she ignored secretly wanted it. 

  
  


"You ok?" Kara's voice snapped her out of her thoughts

"Yeah, I'm fine," 

"You're not the quietest thinker, even in the dark,"

"Yeah, I may not be, but you still reign supreme in that are" Lena responded 

"Sorry if you felt pressured about the therapist thing," Kara mumbled 

"It's fine, you were trying to help. Sorry, I snapped at you,"

"All good?"

"Yeah, all good?" Lena smiled.

She rolled over and faced Kara. Even in the dark, she could see the outline of Kara's face. Her cheeks pulled up into a small smile. Lena opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't work up the courage. The unspoken question hung in the stillness of the air around them. Almost as if Kara read her mind, she opened her arms to Lena. 

"You're sure it's not too much?" She asked.

And Kara nodded. “Come ‘ere,” And so, Lena scooted forward.

like the night before, Lena fell asleep in Kara's arms. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got my computer :) 
> 
> !!COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT !!
> 
> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR 10,000 READS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't really like this chapter, I'm sorry if it sucks   
> it was rushed :( I've been busy 
> 
> I have some law & order references along with private practice :)
> 
> anyway COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I start school next week so idk how consistent I will be with uploading :(

_ Lena looked at Kara. Like, really looked at her. "Just think about it, please,"  _

_ Lena nodded, "Fine,"  _

_ 6 Days Later... _

The ride was quiet, painfully so. It wasn't doing much to ease Lena's stress, giving her brain more time to wander and worry excessively. Kara sat beside Lena, watching her fingers fidget as she focused on the life moving outside the window. Tall buildings and coffee shops were replaced with quaint homes and trees.

  
  


It was a small private practice just on the outskirts of the national city. It wasn't fancy, but it was highly rated and inconspicuous enough for Lena to go to her weekly appointments without much notice. No paparazzi, no nosy staff, just in and out, it was simple. Lena liked simple.

  
  


Kara leaned over and squeezed Lena's hand. Lena sighed, and her gaze remained focused on the movement outside the window. She squeezed Kara's hand back lightly. The car pulled to a stop, up a cobblestone road. A cabin-like building appeared. A large sign hung high over the double glass doors.

  
  


_ 2:15pm _ , early, just like Lena liked to be. In her line of work, it was always better to be safe than sorry. Lena was never anything but punctual for as long as she could remember. 

  
  


" _ National City Lake Side wellness _ , that's a mouthful," Kara joked. 

"Yea," Lena mumbled. She could only stare out the window. She should be getting out of the car now. Moving her feet and walking in there with her head held high, as a Luthor should. Luthors never show fear, uncertainty, anticipation, Luthors never showed emotion, but here Lena was, letting them consume her and spelling them out in her face. Luthors didn't go to therapists, they boxed up their feelings. Feelings were for the weak, Luthors weren't weak. 

  
  


Lena just sat, glued to her seat. Unable to even open her door, just staring. Kara looked at Lena, apprehension was clear. Kara always wondered if maybe she pushed Lena just a little too hard. She knew what it was like to be handled, feeling like a child with a caretaker. She didn't want to reflect any of that onto Lena.

  
  


"Hey," She whispered. Lena snapped out of her haze, looking into Kara's eyes. Kara offered a comforting smile, "If it's too early, we can try again tomorrow or something-," 

"No, I'm just anxious, that's all," Lena put on her boldest brave face, making her voice as believable as possible. Kara nodded. 

  
  


Lena finally stepped out of the car, clutching her purse tightly. Kara reminded her driver to pick them up in about an hour and thanked him for the drive, much to Lena's surprise.

  
  


"You don't have to stay, you can go back home, and I'll just have Matthew to drop me off when I'm done," 

"It's alright, I want to be there if you need a shoulder to lean on after. It's the least I can do," Kara paused, "But if you want me to go, that's fine. I don't want to suffocate you with my presence," Kara said awkwardly, scratching at the base of her neck.

"I didn't want you to feel like it was an obligation. I think your presence is comforting," Lena's eyes widened slightly, as she realized her confession, "you're a great friend," she added quickly. 

Kara's cheeks painted themselves a light shade of pink, ducking her head to avoid Lena's gaze "I try," she said.

They began walking into the clinic. Lena took in a deep breath in hoping to release some of her nerves. 

"You can do it," Kara whispered. And with that, Lena opened the door. The clinic looked as much like a cabin on the inside as it did on the outside. Very homey, like walking into someone's home. Instead of stiff uncomfortable hospital chairs, there were comfy couches. There were only about five people in the waiting area when she arrived. All of which didn't seem to notice or even care about her presence. Quaint elevator music played faintly in the background. Other than that, it was rather quiet.

  
  


There were only about five people in the waiting area when she arrived. All of which didn't seem to notice or even care about her presence. Lena loved the anonymity she had here. The feeling of just being a random stranger and not the sister or daughter of a murdering psychopath. She hated to admit it, but she was beginning to like it here. 

  
  


Kara watched as Lena's shoulders relaxed, and her face loosened. So far, so good. Lena checked in with the redhead receptionist under an alias, for extra security, of course. Even though the whole staff was checked through the DEO, Lena couldn't risk it. She sat next to Kara on one of the couches. 

  
  


No words were exchanged, but Kara's presence spoke volumes. Lena sometimes found it hard to believe she had a friend like Kara, or a friend in general. It wasn't often that people in her life wanted to be around her for the sole purpose of just being her friend. She always was weary of the fact that most people who came into her life wanted her for money, the social status, or her looks. James was just another person who proved once again that the notion was correct. How could someone so happy and bright want to be friends with such a dark and broken person. Lena could never figure it out, why was Kara her friend? And why such a good one, might she add? 

  
  


She began bouncing her knee again, a habit she couldn't escape. Kara pulled Lena's hand into hers. "You'll do great, it's not a test or anything, but even if it was you would pass with flying colors," Kara whispered. 

"Thanks for being here," She whispered back. 

"Of course," 

  
  


They sat and waited until a tall brunette woman with thick-rimmed glasses called out Lena's name. She wasn't old, probably her mid-thirties, Lena concluded. A bright smile lit her face when she made eye contact with Lena. 

  
  


“Elizabeth Myers,” she called out. 

"Go kick therapy's butt," Kara whispered, as a smile spread across her face, and two thumbs up. Lena couldn't help but let out a small chuckle as she rolled her eyes. With one last glance at Kara, she disappeared around the corner.

  
  


Kara sat and waited somewhat impatiently while Lena was away. She scanned through some of the magazines and went through some emails on her phone. She was going down a youtube rabbit hole when she received a call from Alex. She stepped outside quickly as not to disturb the peace in the room. 

  
  


"Hey, Alex," 

"Hey, I just wanted to check in with you and Lena. How's it going so far with the doctor," Alex paused, "What's her name again?"

"Dr.Turner, should I be worried that you did a full background check on this woman and don't remember her name." Kara laughed through the phone 

"Oh shut up, I have many things happening in my brain right now," 

"Has Kelly said anything about James?" 

"Yeah, she did actually,"

**_**Flashback**_ **

_ "I'm here for inmate James Olsen," Kelly told the officer at the front desk.  _

_ He pulled out his walkie-talkie, "Have detainee 3046 transferred into an interrogation room. A Kelly Olsen is here to see him," The officer on the other end confirmed the transfer. _

_ He looked at her ID and back at Kelly, who was tapping her finger against the surface in a slightly aggressive manner.  _

_ "Alright follow me,"  _

_ Her stomach began twisting into knots. She really shouldn't be anxious. If anything, she should be beyond furious, which she was. She followed the man down the hall and around the corner to what could only be an interrogation room. The officer in the room greeted Kelly with a nod.  _

  
  


_ The room was cold, and the stiffness in the air was almost suffocating. Sitting down in the rusty metal chair in front of James, all sense of anxiousness vanished. Irate disappointment took over her.  _

  
  


_ James sat there, masking his smug arrogance with victimization. Kelly wasn't falling for that shit. She was his sister for god sakes, not some stranger. Had it been anyone else in that room, they probably would have fallen for it. Men really do underestimate women to the fullest extent. It's embarrassing, honestly. _

  
  


_ She glared at him, looking at him once over. His arm in a cast and his face swollen slightly. Kelly just couldn't bring herself to care. _

  
  


_ "Hey, sis," He said  _

_ "I can't even look at you right now," She scowled _

_ "I know, the cast and the swelling isn't really a good look," Still kelly said nothing, her mouth suddenly stopped working. Her ability to speak dissipated. James leaned forward, the cuffs chained to the table rattled. "So listen, I need a lawyer. I know I can get one, but those shit for brain free government lawyers aren't going to get me out of this mess. So I need you to find me one, okay? I would if I could, but I don't have much access to anything right now," he smiled sweetly. _

  
  


_ Guilt trip, emotional blackmail, positive reinforcement, Feigning innocence. The starter kit for all types of psychological manipulation. A recipe for disaster, a disaster created by someone like James.  _

  
  


_Kelly slammed her fist against the table, "Damn it, James, what the actual fuck is wrong with you, do you think this is some_ _kind of joke?" He flinched at her tone, her aggressiveness. She wasn't as susceptible as he thought she was, " I don't understand. You came from a great home with parents that loved you. You have an amazing job, with friends that cared about you, everything was fine. Don't you see what you've done? You hurt my friend, your girlfriend. Why?"_

_ "Well, I guess she didn't fit the part. So I had to make do with what I had. She was a nice side piece. With the money and the looks and all, but really, she was just pathetic," He chuckled, “ And as you said, everything was fine. So I couldn't have what was supposed to be my perfect girlfriend ruining everything could I?" He asked, voice tainted with presumption, “So about that Lawyer-," _

  
  


_ Kelly sat there, mouth agape. This person couldn't be her brother, it couldn't be James. Not the James she grew up with. The person was an abusive monster, who preyed on the innocent. _

  
  


_ She stared, she could only stare. If she dared to move, she didn't know what she would do.  _

  
  


_ She leaned in closer, pulling herself closer to James," You better thank that officer over there," She looked back over to the officer who stood in the far corner of the room, back to James, "because if it wasn't for her presence, I would be beating you senseless," she whispered. She stood up and locked her eyes with his, "I'm not getting you a damn lawyer. Don't try contacting me. I want absolutely nothing to do with you. As of right now, you're no one and nothing to me. As for Lena, I will do everything in my power to help her make sure that you rot in a prison,"  _

  
  


_ Kelly exited the room promptly, making no attempt to take a second glance at James. She walked back to her car, tears threatening to spill. Once she closed the door and threw her purse in the passenger seat, she let them fall. Her breathing was short and heavy, the tears were hot. She really didn't want to believe it, her own brother… _

  
  


**_**End of Flashback**_ **

_ "Oh wow, that's terrible. Is she feeling alright now?" _

"Well alright would be an overstatement, but yeah, she's feeling a bit better," 

"I'm glad. We've been working on our end to get lawyers in place and such. We should be hearing from the prosecutor soon. I feel like everything is just starting to get better now, but I know the storm is coming," Kara sighed, "I don't want the trial to backtrack any progress she could make today," She admitted.

"Yea, but sometimes it has to get worse before it gets better," 

"Wow, so wise," Kara mocked 

"Oh Kara, I can be very wise when I want to be," 

"Hey, babe, who are you talking to?" Kelly asked 

"Just Kara, she is underestimating my wiseness," 

"You, Alex Danvers, are many things, but wise is not one of them," Kelly chuckled, "How is she holding up, did you find any of my recommendations helpful?"

"She’s doing better. I got her to agree to therapy, and she’s seeing the Dr.Turner you recommended right now actually," Kara responded.

"Oh gosh, that's great. Violet is excellent at her craft. I can assure you, she’s in great hands. I'm glad I could help,” she said, “Now I'm going to take a shower. Tell Lena I'm glad things are going well, or at least getting better. Don't hesitate to call me for anything" 

“Will do,” 

"You're going to shower?” Alex perked up, “Um, I uh, I gotta go, Kara, ok bye,"

  
  


And with that, the call ended. Kara stared back at her phone, a little dazed from the pace at which it ended. 

  
  


"Oh gross," She said, physically cringing at the realization dawning upon her, "Ew Ew Ew," she chanted as she shook her head.

  
  


Walking back into the clinic, she sat right back down in her spot on the couch. She answered emails and started to gather info on her new assignment for work. She sighed as she read the subject,  _ "Missing Luthors," _ She hated the implication that Lena's disappearance also had something to do with Lex and Lillian. When would the world realize she wasn't like them.

  
  


Of course, their disappearance did prove to be a little suspicious to Kara as well. Although it was good to have a break from their plans of world domination, She knew that this much silence was going to be followed by some kind of catastrophe. She just didn't know when it would hit. Hopefully, they would be kind enough to wait until the world around them settled down. Other than that, crime in National City had been down substantially, so Kara took that as a win.

  
  


Kara glanced down at her watch,  _ 3:12 _ . Lena's session was supposed to be around an hour long. She really hoped all was well. It was hard for Lena to be vulnerable. Progress would take time, but she would power through. Lena was strong, and Kara knew that well. She called Matthew to let him know to be on his way.

  
  


Sure enough, soon as the clock struck 3:15, Lena came out around the corner. She tucked a small pamphlet away in her purse. Her face of relief turned into sight surprise as she played eyes on Kara.

  
  


"You're still here," She said, just above a whispered. It was mostly phrased as an open question towards Kara. But for Lena, it was more like reassurance, Kara didn't leave. 

"Of course not, I wouldn't think of it," She offered a puzzled smile. 

"Hey, all ready to go?" She asked 

"Yeah, is Matthew here yet?" 

"Yea he should be on his way," Kara replied 

  
  


Lena plopped down besides Kara as they waited for their ride to arrive. She sighed deeply and rested her back against the couch. Kara studied her face, watching the way her face tightened with each breath. Her body seemed more relaxed as she sank into the couch, but her face told another story. Kara didn't want to intrude any further than she already had. So she let it be. If Lena wanted to share anything with her, she could do so freely. Kara didn't want to press.

  
  


Lena turned towards Kara and found her staring. Kara immediately ducked her head and blushed a soft shade of pink. Kara immediately shifted her gaze to her hands that sat in her lap. 

  
  


"Thank you for being here. I know sitting on your ass while doing nothing isn't the best way to spend a full hour of your time," She said with a smile. Gratitude pouring out from every word she spoke.

"Of course, I will always be here," Kara smiled back softly.

Matthew called, letting them know he was outside. Lena checked out at the front desk and headed out to the car.

  
  


Just as they began to pull away from the front of the clinic, Lena's phone rang. She stared at it for a few seconds, hesitating. The caller ID was the name of her lawyer, Alexandra Cabot . They knew each other well, well enough to be on a first-name basis. That was a rare occurrence for people Lena considered business associates.

  
  


Ms.Cabot had been Lena's personal lawyer ever since she took over L-Corp. She specialized in almost all areas of the law. As far as Lena knew, there wasn't a case she hadn't won. She was very well known, held to the highest of standards. 

  
  


Kara glanced down at Lena's phone, and her breath in her chest as she read the name. Lena looked up at Kara, the unspoken question hung in the air. Kara nodded softly at her and glanced back down to the phone. Her finger hovered over the green button, and she answered the call.

  
  


"Cabot?" She answered 

"Hey Lena, I just a call from the prosecutors office, the charges stuck," she said.

Lena gasped, tears of joy flowed down her face. 

"Lena?" She began 

"Yes?" she said 

"They set a date,"

And so the storm rolls in, it's going to be one hell of a fight. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been putting of the process of putting James in jail due to the lack of information I could find on the process. Due to this inconvenience, I had to fill in any gaps that occurred in the story to the best of my ability. This mainly came from tv shows and weak articles, both of which aren't entirely accurate. So I have made some mistakes. Because my main goal in writing this story is to inform and educate, I think that I must dress some of the mistake. 
> 
> 1.charges: I implied that It was up to Lena (the victim) to determine whether to press charges. Although this is how the process is portrayed in some tv shows, this is not entirely accurate. Yes, the cooperation of the victim is a main part of pressing charges, its actually up to a prosecutor to determine whether a case is strong enough to be brought to court. 
> 
> 2.time span: usually in cases like these, charges are usually filed by a prosecutor within 72hrs after the suspect (James) is detained. Because its been about a 5 days since James arraignment, the timing isn't exact .
> 
> I hope these help clear things up


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins....
> 
> another filler chapter(Kinda?) We'll be getting to the good stuff soon 
> 
> !!! Instagram: @yourwifejazzy !!!
> 
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it seems like whenever I think I'll be able to post regularly, something always gets in the way
> 
> I started school and its already a pain in the ass, so i'm sorry if this was short. I was going to make this longer but I didn't have enough time and I wanted to upload asap.

October 8th The date etched itself into Lena's mind. October 8th, making it another two weeks later. Things were getting better, at least Lena thought so. She was working so hard to make it better. She was going to therapy, which she at least thought was somewhat working. 

  
  


She had been going to therapy for a little over a month now. Therapy with Dr.Turner wasn't how she expected her to be at all. Lena always thought of shrinks as judgmental feeling vacuums. Making you pour out your feelings while they judged you for everything. 

  
  


They talked about Lena's dreams, the ones that kept her up at night. Causing her to avoid sleep with cups of coffee. Mentions of her separation anxiety, the mental and verbal abuse of her family. They talked about the things that Lena never would've dreamed of telling anyone. The things she kept stuffed into tiny boxes. The things she drowned with coffee and sometimes strong alcohol. The things that forced her into suffocating herself with work as a distraction. The things that over time caused Lena's walls to become thicker and thicker. 

  
  


The things she only really ever told Kara.

  
  


With Dr.Turner, things were comfortable, gentle, and sufficient. Any words spoken didn't feel like bullets of pity into her chest. When she spoke to Dr.Turner, she never pressed the label Lena loathed,  _ victim. _ Instead, she replaced it with something else. Something that didn't make Lena feel small, helpless.

  
  


_ "You, Lena, went through something awful and traumatic.  _ Something that breaks even the strongest of people _. You'll  _ be painted _ with the word victim. But that only describes who you were and what happened to you _ . Implying _ that you aren't in control, fueling him with more power over you. It's not you, and it's not who you will always be. The fact that you're here today and sitting in front of me takes tremendous effort that isn't highly recognize _ d _. You're trying to move forward and remove yourself. That takes great amounts of strength. You're taking back your control. Do you know what that makes you?" Lena stared back emptily, "You, Lena, are a survivor,"  _

She started picking up some slack at work. Of course, all of it being done from the comforts of Kara's home. Jess being kind enough to drop off any essential paperwork. She couldn't do too much, but it was enough to give her back her sense of purpose. Of course, being under Kara's supervision she couldn't do as much as she wanted. 

_ "I will not allow you to overwork yourself Ms.Luthor, not on my watch," Kara ordered  _

_ "You know, Supergirl can intimidate the scariest of criminals. Kara Danvers on the other hand, well, let's just say you wouldn't last five minutes in a boardroom," Lena replied unphased, and Kara pouted, "Nice try though, your warning has been duly noted," She chuckled. _

She had a great support system. Kara was incredible, and Lena was forever grateful for her. Alex checked in from time to time, and Kelly. Well, she wasn't sure about Kelly. They hadn't spoken other than a few transcribed messages through Kara or Alex. Most were "Hey's" and "I hope/I'm glad you're doing well's," very vague.

  
  


She didn't know how Kelly felt about anything. The idea of talking to her made Lena tense. Even though as long as she had known her, she had been nothing but kind and accepting to Lena. But she couldn't help but think that things would be different. Would she hate her for putting James in jail, and ruining his life. 

  
  


This was another subject brought up in her sessions with Dr.Turner,  _ "Remember Lena that nothing that happened was ever your fault. The consequences that James will face are only the result of his actions. I know Kelly well, and I know that she will understand the same. If you truly feel like something will change, talk to her about it,"  _

  
  


When she also brought this up with Kara, her response caught her by surprise. 

  
  


_ "She blames herself," Kara stated, "She also thinks you hate her,"  _

_ "She- oh," _

  
  


Kara explained the story of James' past dating history, his alcoholism. She revealed how Kelly thought her absence played a role in James' behavior. How she thinks she could've prevented it and blames herself for what James did to Lena. And lastly, about his first girlfriend.

  
  


_ There's someone else, she thought "I didn't know, any of it," Lena lowered her head. _

  
  


In all honesty, Lena didn't know what she would say. She didn't blame Kelly at all, nor did she hate her. If anything, she figured it would be the other way around. 

  
  


Other than that, Lena finally felt like she was taking control of her life again. Taking in the true meaning of the word  _ survivor _ . But then she got her phone call, and James came back crashing through her life again. 

  
  


_ "They set a date,"  _

  
  


This should be good news. The last few steps in freeing herself from his grasps. But it truly just felt like he was back dragging her down again, pushing her against walls. Controlling her every move. Lena couldn't help but feel like she would never escape him. He would always be there, in any way possible. Taking control over her life.

  
  


Things were getting better, why did he have to ruin everything? 

  
  


She still had yet to return to the public eye. It seemed like nobody like everyone had stopped worrying about her whereabouts, Much to her relief.

  
  


Lena stared openly into space, lost in her thoughts. Not a single word was registering in her head. She was too occupied with her racing thoughts, moving a mile a minute. Kara observed Lena and her blank stare, being swallowed by the deep spaces of her mind. 

  
  


Ms.Cabot continued to ramble off about legal precautions. They should be paying attention, listening to everything said. But Lena was too busy being consumed by her thoughts, and Kara was too busy watching her. 

  
  


"Lena?" she asked. Still, with no response, Lena stared off into space. Ms.Cabot and Kara glanced at each other puzzlingly. "Lena?" She leaned over and tapped her arm softly. 

  
  


Lena ripped herself from her thoughts, returning to reality, "Yea, um, yes to whatever you said. I trust you'll do what needs to get done," She responded. Kara knitted her eyebrows together in confusion. In moments like these, Lena usually turned into the boardroom CEO. Listening to every detail, analyzing for any error. 

"We will need anyone else who can testify on trial," 

"Like who?" Kara asked

"Family, friends, anyone from his past relationships. People who can account for any of his behavior. It will be impactful if we can prove a pattern or show a series of alarming behavior," 

Kara nodded, "I think I have a couple of people in mind. I can send over some names and get in touch," 

"That would be great," she nodded, "I'll forward all of the files and information so you could look over it at home," She suggested 

"That's great, thank you," Kara smiled.

"She doesn't have many good people in her life. It's good to know she has someone," she glanced at Lena, "Take care of her for me?" 

"Of course," Kara replied sincerely, "Thank you for your help," She said, collecting the paperwork. "Lena, we should get going now," 

  
  


Without a word, Lena stood and nodded towards her lawyer and headed straight for the door. Kara shot an apologetic look at the lawyer. She only shrugged it off with an understanding smile. 

  
  


Kara rushed out after Lena and found her waiting in the car. She collapsed into the seat next to her, and Micheal began driving them home. The blank stare stayed plastered onto Lena's face. Kara didn't understand, Lena had been crying tears of joy and relief. But now she looked as if everything was pointless. 

  
  


Kara cleared her throat, "Hey, you alright? you seemed a little out of it in there?" 

"Mhmm," Lena murmured, "Just peachy,"

"Hey, you can talk to me," Kara urged 

Lena sighed and turned her attention to Kara, "You won't let this go, will you?" 

"Nope," she said, popping the p, a large smile plastered on her face.

Lena rolled her eyes half-heartedly, "I feel like I'll never get away from him. Like wherever I go, he will always be there in some way. If not physically, he'll be in my thoughts. Constantly pointing out everything I do wrong, telling me what to do, micromanaging me. Making my life feel suffocating once again," 

Kara listened intently, watching the way Lena's face scrunched inwards. Suddenly, she had an idea. A brilliant one, she might add. Something to help Lena express her feelings, in more of a physical manner. "Matthew, please reroute to this address please," Kara handed him a slip of paper. 

"Um, where are we going?" Lena gave a questioning look.

"I have an idea, just wait," Kara said excitedly.

"Oh god," Lena said 

"Don't complain, I have good ideas," Kara feigned offense. Lena's eyebrows shot upwards, "mostly..." she added. Lena just laughed, "Ok fine, maybe I don't have the greatest ideas, but this is a good one, I promise,"

"I hope so," Lena said 

  
  


***

  
  


They pulled up to a small abandoned warehouse, "Ok, we're here," Kara jumped out of the car eagerly. 

Lena looked at the old rusty building and back to Kara, "we really have to reevaluate your idea of a surprise," She joked.

Kara rolled her eyes, "Just come inside,"

"I'm not going in there. If the wind blows too hard, it will most certainly fall crush me," 

"Oh, please, you'll be fine. Plus, I'll protect you," She stepped closer, 

"Come on," 

"No," 

"Please," 

"No," Lena said firmly 

"Pretty please," She pouted intensely

She sighed, trying her best to avoid Kara's gaze, "Kar- I- ugh fine," That pout would melt even the coldest of people. Kara just had that kind of affect on people, her sunshine. If she didn't know better, that pout could make Lena do despicable things. 

  
  


They approached the door and pulled out a key on her chain unlocking the rusty lock. Stepping in small clouds of dust floated through the air, making Lena sneeze. She looked around and saw gym equipment. 

  
  


Of course everything was super sized to fit the hero. boulders attached to the bar of a bench press. A punching bag that would probably break Lena's knuckles. But it had other equipment that was accessible to humans. An elliptical, exercise bikes, a treadmill and other various machines. In the corner laid a pile of beaten and battered punching bags. 

Kara looked at here with a giant smile spreading her arms out "Ta da," she said.

Lena looked at her puzzilingly, "Kara darling I appreciation the gesture, but what the fuck are we doing here exsactly?" she asked. 

"It's a gym," she said matter a factly 

"Yes, I can see that," She chuckled 

"Were gonna try something, ok? something I think could help, and if you don't like it, we can try something else," Kara asked eagerly, " Just humor me today," 

"Alright fine," Lena grumbled 

Kara squealed and sped off to various parts of the room. She returned in with punching mitts and some hand wraps, "I usually go bare handed, so I guess this will have to do," she said sheepishly holding up the cloth.

They sat on one of the benches against the wall. Lena wrapped her left hand with the cloth. Crossing over the palm of her hand, and around the knuckles, the way Kara had shown her. She tried to wrap her right hand, but struggled as the cloth kept coming loose. She grunted in annoyance at her third attempt. 

"Let me help," Kara pulled her hand into hers and began wrapping it tentatively. She held her hand tentatively and handled it carefully. Adjusting the cloth so it wasn't too tight, making sure it was to Lena's liking. 

Their faces were close, Lena could feel the heat radiating off her rosy cheeks. Stray blonde hair tickled her face. Long angelic lashes curtained ocean blue eyes under the frames of her glasses, "Is that alright, not too tight?" 

"It's perfect," she whispered, her gaze never leaving Kara’s face.

They moved to the center of the room, Kara instructed Lena on how to do a basic jab. Lena took a few swings at the mitts on Kara's hands. 

"Ok, ok, not bad," she chuckled. Now try and punch your feelings out. 

"And how do I do that?" she asked. 

"Take your angriest feelings, ball them up into your fist and punch, tell me how you feel,"

"Well..." she began, "I'm angry," punch, "It infuriates me," punch, "The way I can still let him control me even when he isn't around," punch, jab, "Ruining anything good to come, I- just-," punch," I hate him, I hate him so much," she spat out aiming three more munches with her left hand. 

That's how they spent the rest of their day into the evening. Lena, punching out every frustration, while Kara held steady taking it all in. Punching until her knuckles ached and her sweat bled through her clothes. 

It felt good, letting out her anger without feeling like she had to apologize for it. Putting her feelings into something she could throw out in her punches. Sweat started to build on her forehead as she punched her way well into the afternoon. As they exited the building, the sky glowed a tint of orange and yellow.

Lena was exhausted as she collapsed into the seat of the car, "Sorry to keep you waiting Matthew," she apologized.

"It's no problem at all Miss Lena, I enjoyed watching the sunset," he said 

"Remind me to raise your salary," she said groggily.

"You already pay me way more than enough Miss Lena," he said, to which she chuckled. 

They started upon their journey back to Kara's place. Lena rested her head on Kara's shoulder in exhaustion and sighed, "Thank you, the punching the feelings out method has done wonders already," she said followed by a small yawn.

"Mhmm," Lena mumbled as she nuzzled closer into Kara. She drifted off into her sleep snoring softly. Kara began stroking the top of her Lena's hair softly as she gazed out the window and up into the sky. 

They started upon their journey back to Kara's place. Lena rested her head on Kara's shoulder in exhaustion and sighed, "Thank you, the punching the feelings out method has done wonders already," 

"I'm glad," Kara whispered against her hair with a smile. 

"I think I'm gonna talk to Kelly," she said abruptly. 

"Oh ok, yea, that's a good idea," Kara said, somewhat surprised.

"Mhmm," Lena mumbled as she nuzzled closer into Kara. She drifted off into her sleep snoring softly. Kara began stroking the top of Lena's hair softly. 

Listening to Lena's heartbeat and her soft breathing fading in and out. Bathing in the closeness of Lena's head laying against her shoulder. Kara made it her mission to let Lena sleep as soundly as she could for the whole ride. Matthew smiled fondly at the two through the rearview mirror. 

Kara gazed up at the stars and the moon, her mind drifting to Krypton. Her family, her childhood. Lena would've loved it there. She would probably spend hours in the ancient libraries studying the old scientific text. Working with those on the high council to solve some of the planet's problems with that big brain of hers. Kara would've taken her to all of the festivals and her favorite spots. Lena would nag her until she eventually gave in and started teaching Lena Kryptonian. 

Then her mind drifted to Lena in the traditional white robes. Her hair in soft waves, flowing down to her shoulders. The sun of Krypton illuminating down upon her pale skin. They would have picnics in fields full of flowers basking in the presence of each other and-

"Miss Danvers, we've arrived," Matthew interrupted her fantasy. He rushed to the passenger side and opened the door.

"Thank you," She said.

"Would you like some help getting Miss Luthor up the stairs, or will you be waking her up?" 

She shifted her attention to Lena, who was still sound asleep on her shoulder, "It's alright, I think I'll just carry her up," Kara pulled Lena into a bridal carry, laying her head against her chest, and stepped out of the car.

Matthew moved quickly to open the door, which Kara thanked him for. She made her way into the elevator and nudged the button with her elbow. Opening the door was somewhat a challenge, but she managed to get it open and place Lena on the bed. She pulled off her shoes and eased the coat off her body. 

She watched Lena sink into the mattress. Kara could imagine that the slacks and blouse weren't the most comfortable thing to sleep in or workout in, for that matter. She started to regret making Lena come to the gym with her. She laid out some of Lena's clothes and left them on the night table beside her. 

It was well into the night now, and these afternoon activities left her in an uncomfortable layer of sweat. She quickly hopped into the shower, letting the suds wash over her skin. 

Kara had been in the shower a few minutes before she heard frantic steps slap against the floor. 

"Kara?" followed by more steps, "Kara!?" Lena's voice called out frantically. 

Kara immediately stopped the flow of water, wrapping herself in a towel. She didn't bother drying herself off and didn't care if she was making puddles of water on the floor. "Lena?" she popped her head out the doorway. 

Lena stood in front of the bathroom door, and a flood of relief washed over her face. Her heart was racing, and her breath was only beginning to slow, "I thought you left, I- I'm sorry, nevermind. I didn't hear the water running, sorry." She apologized profusely.

"It's alright, did you have a nightmare?"

"Lena shook her head," 

"Ok, well,l I'll be right out in a minute, and you can come in after me," she gave a comforting smile, "Were the clothes I put out ok?" 

"Yes, thank you," She said, and Kara disappeared into the shower once again. 

As planned, Lena went in after Kara and showered. 

  
  


***

  
  


When Lena came out, she found Kara sitting on the couch, looking through things on her computer and manilla files spread out in the center table. 

  
  


"You don't have to look through those again. I'm sure you got everything you need to know from Cabot this morning,"

"Oh, well, I didn't know if you wanted to look through everything or..." she yawned 

"I probably should do it myself,," she sighed, " you don't need to stay up though, she glanced over at the clock. It's late, and I'm sure you need to get sleep after today," she said with a smile.

"Alright, but if you need anything, wake me up. Don't even think twice ok?" Kara urged, "And don't stay up too late," she added

"Alright, goodnight doofus," 

"Goodnight Megamind," Kara said in a sing-song voice.

"Megamind?" she chuckled.

"Yea, because you have a big brain because you're smart and all and science stuff," Kara said nonchalantly, Lena just blinked in confusion.

Then it clicked, and Kara's hands shot up to her mouth, "Oh. My. Rao. Lena, have you never watched Megamind?"

Lena shook her head and chuckled, "You seem to be forgetting the house I grew up in Kara, No fun central,"

She looked at her in complete and utter offense, "So no Disney movies, Musicals, nothing!? Oh goodness, please tell me you've seen Wizard of Oz,"

"Nope," Lena laughed.

"I can't believe that you're laughing at my pain right now," 

"Well, you should've seen your face. It's like I had told you that the world ran out of potstickers," She wiped the stray tears from her eyes.

"You are insufferable," Kara grumbled as she disappeared into the bedroom.

  
  


Lena dived into each file, grabbing a highlighter from her purse. She needed to know and be prepared for everything and anything. She highlighted key information and anything that may need to be re-evaluated. 

  
  


Overall she was satisfied with Cabot's presentation of her case. But there was always the question in the back of Lena's mind. _ Would she actually win?  _ She wanted to be optimistic, but the odds were truly stacked against her. She's read how things usually play out, and most of the outcomes were weak, or just prove that any efforts were useless when the justice system constantly failed to protect survivors of domestic violence. 

  
  


Lena's eyes scanned through pages and pages of files and documents, Constantly highlighting and noting key information. She came across her statement. Reading over every word, recounting her experience as far as she could remember. There were gaps in her story from the time she blacked out to when she arrived at the hospital. She noted that in the back of her mind as a potential weak spot. 

  
  


But what caught her by surprise was when she flipped the page reading over Supergirl’s. Kara was the one who found her. She had always thought a nosey neighbor had heard the noise and called the police. But it was supergirl. It was  _ Kara.  _ But she never heard her talk about it, not a word about anything. What she saw, how she felt, what happened. 

  
  


Lena read through the report her eyes focusing on the details.  _ Broken glass, furniture turned over, Lena's body limps on the ground.  _ It went on to describe the state Lena was in.  _ Passed out, unconscious, her body beaten and bru-.  _

  
  


Lena dropped the packet onto the table. She couldn't read anymore, she just couldn't do it, it was too much. She stacked all of the papers into a neat pile and shut the laptop quietly, and tiptoed into Kara's room. 

  
  


She felt guilty, incredibly so. Kara hadn't said a damn thing, not once. She saw her best friend beaten almost lifeless on the floor. She was the one who flew Lena to the hospital, ensuring her safety. Kara saw Lena in the most broken state she had ever been in, and it was all at the hand at someone she knew personally. Still, she put all her effort into focusing on Lena, making sure she was ok. Letting her stay in her home, in her bed, being by her side every step of the way, just as she promised. 

  
  


She may have saved her as supergirl, but she would always be there as Kara. So when she laid her head against the pillow late that night. Hearing Kara sigh happily in her sleep she whispered into the darkness of the air, "Supergirl might have saved me, but you Kara Danvers, you're my hero," she placed a soft kiss to her forehead. 

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im planning on ending the story soon. woah woah calm down, there will be a 2nd part coming RIGHT after im done. Im not planning on taking a long break or anything, unless things get a little too hectic. But I think i'ts best that I split it into a second part that will be focusing mainly on Lena's life after everything and the supercorp relationship. 
> 
> just know that I will never leave a story unfinished :) my absence only means that I've been busy but I will always come back 
> 
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I was going to add another part to this, but I had to scrap it last minute so that I could upload a chapter this week (I hope y'all don't mind) 
> 
> One more chapter then we hit the trial y'all!!  
> (If all goes as planned. lets hope it does :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT   
> (you know I love them ;)
> 
> Instagram: @yourwifejazzy   
> ^follow for updates^

"You might've let it slip that you potentially wanted to have a conversation with Kelly," Kara had said this morning. 

"I did say that, didn't I?" She said through a yawn. 

"Yeah, well, I think it's a good idea, so I was wondering if you wanted me to set something up. I didn't know if you had her number or not, but I could ask Alex or something," 

"That's quite alright. I don't have her number actually, but I kinda wanted to talk to her myself if that's ok," Lena added, 

"Oh, yeah, that's perfectly fine. I just wanted to help bridge the gap if I could," Kara replied.

"I wanted to talk to her soon if that's possible," 

"Sure," Kara replied excitedly as she scribbled the number down a spare piece of paper. 

  
  


After her breakfast, she sat and stared at her phone. The cursor blinked at her as if to say, _ "Just get on with it already,"  _ She really should call. It would seem more considerate. But Lena knew as soon as the phone would ring, she would hang up only seconds later. It shouldn't be this hard just typing a few words and hitting send, a simple,  _ "Hi, It's me, Lena,"  _ and waiting for a response should do just fine,  _ right _ ? 

  
  


So that's what she did. Lena sent the message quickly before her mind could convince her to delete it and go about her day. She immediately flipped her phone over, laying it face down. _ There, it's done. That wasn't so hard, was it? s _ he thought to herself,  _ Now we wait. _

  
  


So she waited for what felt like forever. And of course, like always, her thoughts betrayed her. _ She probably won't even want to talk to me,  _ she sighed into the palms of her hand _ , Barely even a hi to her for months, and now you just drop in like a bomb. _

  
  


Kelly and Lena had never been particularly close. They were somewhat a semblance of friendship, or so Lena hoped. They shared the same circle, seeing each other at game nights or on the occasions on which Kara would force her out of her office to hang out. But of course, those outings were always chaperoned by James. He wasn't too fond of Lena getting to know his sister, for what reason? She wasn't sure. Kelly seemed sweet, intelligent, always kind to her in the rare moments they would interact. And she had to admit, she and Alex were a great pair. 

Lena had sometimes found herself envying them. Thinking silently to herself, I wish someone would hold me like that, or I wish I could make me feel as relaxed. Then usually, as if on cue Kara would jump out from seemingly nowhere and tell her some kind of silly joke. Most of the time, they were basic knock-knock jokes or something so profound that Lena couldn't even grasp the punch line. So Kara would take her time explaining the joke to Lena. When she would get to the point of the punch line, she would topple over and laugh like it wasn't her joke, which she probably stored up and saved, just to tell it to Lena. 

  
  


Kara wasn't a person who thought explaining a joke made it any less enjoyable. Half of the time, Lena still couldn't understand why Kara found the jokes so funny or even why a person would laugh at their own joke. But she would laugh anyway, seeing how much joy it brought to Kara when she finally understood the joke and it's punch line. The proud look on her face as if to say  _ ha beat that world, I made Lena Luthor laugh.  _

  
  


The pulse of the vibration on her thighs made Lena jump slightly.  _ Oh god,  _ the reply came quicker than anticipated. She hesitated a moment before flipping the phone over to meet her gaze. 

  
  


**Kelly:** _ Hey, nice to hear from you. How are you doing, is everything alright? _

_ (10:34 am) _

**Me:** _ Yeah, I just wanted to see if we could talk? _

(10:34 am)

**Kelly:** _ Alright, is it something you wanted to do in person or...? _

Lena paused for a moment,  _ Yeah that would probably be best _ , she thought.

**Me:** _Yes, I know it's short notice, but I was wondering if we could meet today? Maybe at your apartment, I'm still not out in public yet._

_ (10:35 am) _

**Kelly:** _Oh sure, I'm free anytime today._

_ (10:35 am) _

**Me:** _ Your place later this afternoon?  _

_ (10:35 am) _

**Kelly:** _Perfect, I'll let Alex know. It's good to hear from you Lena :)_

(10:35)

  
  


So now, Lena was here standing in front of the door to Alex and Kelly's apartment. Nervous, palms a little clammy as she continuously wiped them onto her blouse. Kara had wished her well as she left that morning. She planned on spending some time with her sister while Lena was away. The idea that Lena had intruded so much on Kara's life to the point where she started spending less time with her sister made her feel guilty. Of course, Kara assured her that it was no problem, and Alex understood. She almost turned around and scurried back down to the car where Matthew was waiting. She could just leave and reschedule or simply change her mind and call her from the space in Kara's home. 

  
  


But her body seemed to work faster than the rest of her mind. Before she knew it, she had set three knocks on the entry to their home. Seconds later, it flew open, and Kelly greeted her.

  
  


She was practically bouncing on her toes. She, like Lena, was nervous. This is the first time they had spoken (not to mention in person) since she had woken up. Not wanting it to be perceived as hesitation, Kelly masked her anxieties with a welcoming persona. 

  
  


"Hey," she said with a smile.

"Hi," Lena responded, reciprocating the friendliness. 

  
  


They stood there for a few seconds, neither of them knowing what to say. 

  
  


"I'm sorry, come in, come in. It's lovely to see you," Kelly said finally.

  
  


Lena stepped inside and slipped off her shoes. She shook off her coat and hung it up on the rack. She was surprised to see Alex rushing out of the bedroom. She paused when she realized Lena had entered she flashed a welcoming smile. 

  
  


"Hey, Lena, good to see you," She said 

"Nice to see you too Alex," 

"I hope the stay with Kara hasn't been too bad," She chuckled,

"Oh no, she's great. She’s making sure I'm comfortable and all. She’s really good at it," She blurted out a little too quickly for it not to be suspicious. A slight blush grew on her face as she realized the word that just came out of her mouth. 

  
  


Kelly and Alex threw small knowing glances at each other that left Lena puzzled. Communicating with one another without saying a word.

  
  


"That's great, I gotta head to the DEO real quick. So I will see you later my sweetness (Yes Alex Danvers is soft, but for Kelly Olsen and Kelly only)," With a quick peck to Kelly's cheek and a wave goodbye to Lena, Alex dashed out of the door, leaving the two women alone. 

  
  


Lena stood in front of the door, staring holes into the floor. She shifted uncomfortably as the two struggled on what to say. Where could they even begin? Kelly wasn't exactly sure what Lena even wanted to talk about. She only knew that she wanted to talk. But there was so much they could _ talk  _ about, and that's what made her so nervous. 

  
  


"Sorry for dropping in out of nowhere, I hope I'm not inconveniencing you in any way," Lena said, breaking the silence. 

"No, it's perfectly fine. I'm glad you wanted to talk," Kelly replied as she ushered Lena over so they could sit comfortably on the couch. "It honestly caught me by surprise. I didn't think you would want to talk to me, or having anything to do with me," 

"Honestly, I thought it would be the other way around. I thought you hated me," She chuckled nervously, "After all, I did put your brother in jail and had his face plastered over every screen as some sort of criminal," 

"Where James is, is where he deserves to be. Don't think for a second that I'm angry for putting him away. That man is not my brother, by any means," She replied earnestly, "What you did-, what you're doing is so incredibly brave, don't think for a second that I'm not on your side," 

"I- Thank you, so much," She breathed out a heavy sigh of relief, "You have no idea how relieving it is to hear that," She said 

"I'm here for you Lena," She said, pulling her into a hug.

  
  


It was weird, a strangely unfamiliar feeling. She never hugged anyone but Kara. So when she let Kelly's arms wrap around her, she expected it to be stiff and uncomfortable. She didn't have much experience in the area of platonic physical affection. 

  
  


But to her surprise, it was nothing like she thought it would be. It was warm and welcoming. Friendly in a way she hadn't felt before. It was, in a way, like Kara's hug but with less…. love? Not to say that it was uncomfortable or unfriendly, but it just lacked... Kara. Still, when she found herself relaxing in the embrace, she was glad to have another person to call her friend, or at least she hoped so. 

  
  


They pulled away with grateful smiles. "Friends?" Kelly asked 

"Of course," She replied. This was good, making connections, restoring relationships. My baby steps weren't as futile as she thought they were. 

"Since we're dishing out our feelings and such. I just need to ask, you always seemed very distant towards me whenever we happened to be around each other. I never really knew why, you know. I always wondered if I wasn't welcoming enough to you, or if you just weren't comfortable around me," she hesitated, taking a minute to form her words, "because I was with Alex or something," She admitted through a faint whisper.

  
  


Lena's face contorted itself into an expression of confusion.  _ Why would she be uncomfortable because of- _ Lena's eyebrows shot through the roof as the realization dawned on her. _ Oh god, does she think I'm homophobic?  _

  
  


"Kelly, oh, goodness, no. Was that the impression I was giving off?" Lena would be horrified with herself if she ever made anyone feel that way. This conversation had quickly taken a turn for the worst. 

"Well, not exactly, but I couldn't figure out why it was always weird between us, so I just listed together the possible reasons, and- yeah," she chuckled shyly, "And with you and Jam-," she ended her sentence there, catching herself before she said too much. She didn't know how much of the former brother-sister relationship Lena knew about. How and why it was so estranged and distant. She doubted he even talked about her, if anything, only bad things about who she was and her  _ lifestyle.  _

  
  


It all began to click, James couldn't be known for being openly homophobic, and he never was straight forward about it. When she did catch him in expressing his... distaste, it was only in small microaggressions that could easily have been passed off as something else. But now, as she began thinking back, the big picture was painted clear as day.

  
  


Always making slick comments around his sister whenever she even dared to speak to Lena,  _ "What, you wanna steal her too?"  _ he spat out before pulling Lena away. 

  
  


Another instance when the women of the group commented on her outfit she had worn to the gala. To which, Kelly had given her a blush-worthy compliment,  _ "Damn Lena, you really dress to kill," _ she said. Caught in the moment, she hadn't noticed Jame's intense glare aiming straight at his sister. She had responded with a swift, _ "Oh stop it, you're too kind," with a small chuckle.  _ This had angered James, leaving him furious as he excused them, removing her from the group with a mask of politeness. When she got home, it in turn, only earned her a slap across the face. At that time, Lena didn't understand why. 

  
  


With the story of the college girlfriend, and the possessiveness. He saw his sister- his gay sister, as a threat to his relationship. So in turn, he kept Lena as far away from her as possible. Like he did with anyone else, mostly men and now queer women as well. (This proved to be difficult when she was a woman working in a male dominated profession.) It all started to make sense, but it also made Lena sick to her stomach. 

  
  


"Kara told me about the ex, and the one after her, the things he said to you," She blurted.

"O- oh," Kelly stammered.

"I didn't know any of it. At least not until- after," she paused, "So I understand why you would think that. I guess I never paid enough attention to it to see it for what it was. But just know that any actions to avoid you or any semblance friendship with you was not my intention. I actually tried to have him set up some kind of outing, lunch, or even just some coffee to get to know each other. But he refused each and every time, shutting me down at the mention of you. He never permitted me to speak to you or even interact with you without him being there. One day, I just asked one too many times, and he-," 

"Lena, it's ok, you don't need to explain yourself. I understand." She rushed out, 

_ Good, ok, good.  _

"I'm glad we talked, it feels better now," Kelly smiled. 

"I agree, breathable," Lena said 

"Yes, breathable," she repeated with a chuckle.

"We should hang out sometime. With Kara and Alex, or just you and me. I want to get to know you better than those shitty articles and news headlines that make you sound like a monster," Kelly insisted. 

  
  


She hadn't expected the proposal. Most people didn't want to get to know a Luthor further than a handshake. But to her surprise, she didn't feel the need to close herself away from Kelly.

  
  


"Yeah, I'd like that," She said, as they exchanged friendly smiles. 

  
  


With everything being dished out, all was well between them. Except for one more thing weighing heavily on her shoulders.

  
  


"Before I ask this, just know that I didn't come here with any kind of ulterior motive. I truly did want to talk to you, but I have another thing to ask of you,"

"Alright, go ahead," She said,

"I don't want you to feel like you in a position where you have to say yes,"

Kelly nodded, "Understood," 

"Would you be willing to testify on my behalf?" 

Kelly stiffened slightly as she shifted uncomfortably. She avoided Lena's gaze for a moment while she thought in silence, "Against James," It wasn't exactly a question, more like an acceptance of reality. 

  
  


She should've known the question was coming. Not that it upset her, but it was just a lot to unpack at that moment. If she said yes, it would be fulfilling the promise she made to not only herself but to James.  _ "As for Lena, I will do everything in my power to help her make sure that you rot in a prison," _ It would be admitting that once in for all she believed he was guilty.

  
  


"Against James," Lena repeated with a small nod.

  
  


Of course, Lena couldn't expect an immediate reaction. This wasn't some small favor to ask, that she understood. But the amount of silence in her pause, the strain in Kelly's face, sent her brain into panic mode. All the effort she put into trying to connect with Kelly had gone down the drain. _ Leave it to me to destroy a perfectly good thing _ , she thought.  _ God, Lena, your such an idi- _

  
  


"Alright," Kelly said, interrupting Lena’s self pity.

"Alr- Wha- you're saying yes?" The amount of shock in her tone betrayed her. 

"Yes, I'll testify," She said again, "I said that I was on your side, and I meant it. Whatever it takes, I want James put away, as he should be," 

  
  


Lena really couldn't help it, but what she did next shocked her as soon as she did it. 

  
  


She pulled Kelly into a tight hug, almost suffocatingly so. 

  
  


"I didn't take you for a hugger Lena Luthor," Kelly said, as she squeezed her back.

"I'm not," Lena said, wiping away happy tears, "I think I've been around Kara for too long. She's starting to rub off on me," she chuckled lightly. 

"I can see that," Kelly replied with a laugh.

"If it's not too much, I have another favor to ask," 

"Anything," Kelly replied. 

"I was wondering if you could help me get in touch with the girlfriend," Lena said, " The one who could've been me," 

"I'll see what I can do," Kelly replied earnestly. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how many chapters the trial will be, but it's going to be a lot (because there is going to be SO MUCH DIALOGUE) . We'll get another glimpse of what it was like for Lena, so be prepared for that.
> 
> my re evaluated estimate is bringing the story to about 21-22 chapters :)  
> (But it may be more depending on how things go)


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I always think my chapters are gonna be longer than they turn out to be :( and they never end up meeting expectations wtf *screams* anyway I hope this was tolerable....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> criminal minds/ Jemily fans your being fed, yes its scraps, but at least your eating something :)
> 
> !!Instagram: @yourwifejazzy !!
> 
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT

She waited for days, constantly checking her phone for emails, text, calls. As the days crept closer, slowly wrapping around her, pulling her down, drowning her in a sea of stress. Every time her screen brightened, she almost leaped into the air. She knew it would take time, and that Kelly was only trying her hardest. But Lena searched like her life depended on it. Although, in a way, it did. 

  
  


She knew her case was strong, she had the utmost confidence in her lawyer's ability and the medical documentation of her best friend's sister. The two women had to be the best in their field, so she shouldn't be worried. But Lena was a realist, a strategic thinker, and a perfectionist. She didn't just go out on whims and make a decision without being at least 99.9% sure that it would have an outcome of success. Right now, she was feeling 95% confident in her circumstances. That 5% was sending Lena into a spiral, keeping her up at night. 

  
  


But when she got the call early that afternoon. The clock had only just struck half-past eleven on October 1'st. She had been sitting and working quietly, updating herself on the company's monthly analytics. Kara sat across from her typing away a storm. Glasses perched at the tip of her nose, concentrating on the screen in front of her. When her phone rang, she almost jumped out of her chair as she read the caller ID.

  
  


She held her phone in her hand, just staring, letting it ring. It had happened time and time before. She would reach for the phone, answering in record time just to be told they were still only at a dead end. So with each call that came, she learned to lower her expectations. She couldn't bring herself to feel the devastating rush of disappointment once again. It was tiring to build up hope, to constantly have it be torn down. 

  
  


So in her phone laid the hand that held her fate, but still, she did not answer. Kara's hands paused in their typing as she peered up at Lena over her glasses. She had been watching Lena the past few days. It had been a struggle keeping her spirits up with the end of each phone call. Optimism isn't an area that Lena excelled in, that Kara knew. Again, she was a realist.

  
  


_ "It could be her this time, you know," _ She said after a glance at the phone.

  
  


She sighed, collecting any part of her that had hope. At this point, having hope was fucking exhausting. Honestly, she didn't know how Kara did it all the time.

  
  


and she answered.

  
  


There was quiet, a short pause of quiet the air was still. The same environment that was created with every call. 

  
  


_ "I found her Lena, she's in the metropolis,"  _

  
  


Kelly had gone back years of connections and friendships through social media to find her. It had been difficult, exhausting, and somewhat awkward. But when she got in contact with a friend of a friend who sent her Emily's socials, she felt as though it all paid off. 

  
  


Kelly had messaged her through Instagram and set up a phone call. Emily was rather surprised to be seeing a text from her. She contemplated if she should even reply, she didn't really want to bring back that time in her life. The end of her relationship with James had left her in a slightly rocky position. After him, she had to take time to recollect herself, making him a blueprint of everything to avoid. She could only imagine what it had been like had she stayed with him. 

  
  


Even now, she sometimes thinks back to all those years ago to when she felt suffocated, backed against a corner. She vowed never to repeat the past, she deserved better, and she knew that. 

  
  


But when she woke up that morning to turn on the daily news before breakfast, seeing his face plastered all over the screen. _ "Olsen arrested in connection to missing Luthor,"  _ the headline read. She almost dropped her mug. It all came back in a big gust of wind sweeping her up and pulling her under again. Bringing her back to the times backed against a corner, the small details he tried to control her with. The times she refused to comply with his ridiculous demands. What she wore, who she talked to, where she could go. When she started making excuses for him, continuously telling herself that it was her fault. That's when she knew she had to get the fuck away. Emily was not one to be controlled, so she got up and left. Transferring her credits from her community college to Midvales University. Still, at the time, he never hit her. But if things continued the way they did, he would've. She knew it was only a matter of time before he found someone else. 

  
  


Never in a million years would she have guessed it would be Lena Luthor, of all people. But then again, it just proves to show, it can happen to anyone. Her victim response unit in her behavior analysis class taught her that well. Never rule anyone out because it could easily be you or your seemingly cheerful neighbor next door. You can never really know.

  
  


But alas she responded, the call wasn't as stress packed as she thought it would be. She only knew Kelly from reference and had met her only one time. A short and brief interaction was a drastic contrast they had that late night. 

  
  


The call lasted for about three hours. It was somewhat awkward considering that the call came from someone she had only seen once. After they got comfortable talking to each other, Kelly took the dive. Unloading everything about James, Lena Luthor, and her initial reason for calling. 

  
  


It didn't surprise Emily as much as it should have. Emily was also a realist, she and Lena are alike in that way. So again, she knew it was bound to happen sooner or later.

  
  


_ "...So that's why I'm calling you," _

_ "And you want me to go on the stand?" _

_ "Essentially, yes," She spoke through the phone _

_ She sighed deep and heavy, "Let me think about it?,"  _

  
  


**October 1**

  
  


Cabot's office was quiet, late into the afternoon. The sun had just begun to set, and the color of the leaves reflected that of the sky. It was beautiful. A stark contrast to the way Lena's nerve's had been making her feel. This whole road had been nothing but pure anxiety and fear. But, still, she had to remember, one step closer, talking to her would get her one step closer. As of right now, that was more than she could ask for. 

  
  


Kara waited in the car, her anxieties mirroring Lena's. With the whole ride, Lena's hand suffocated Kara's. She stared out the window and said nothing, but Kara didn't have to ask. She was nervous, very nervous. Kara did her best to whisper-soft encouragements in her ear, trying to soothe the ache of stress and worry. Keeping it lighthearted and positive, but also being pragmatic. Her words wrapped Lena in a blanket, keeping her safe only until they arrived.

  
  


She went in alone, well, not necessarily alone, but without Kara. It was weird not having her by her, like a piece of her was missing. Kelly had come with her of course, along with her legal counsel. 

  
  


And just beyond the double doors sat Emily Jereau.

  
  


Here she sat in some expensive law office meeting room waiting, 7 pm on the dot as arranged. Her lawyer to the left of her tapped away on his phone as they waited. Emily was sure that he was, let's say, less experienced in comparison to the lawyers a Luthor would have. 

  
  


Many questions bounced around in her head like ping pong balls. Why is it that Lena needed her? Did she not have enough evidence to do enough damage? Or was she just a liability that had to be reached before James' lawyers could get to her? 

  
  


When the click of the door handle reached her ears, she stood immediately. In walked Kelly and her lawyer, and another woman who could only be Lena Luthor. The women and their lawyers introduced themselves. But Emily felt her eyes stick to the Luthor. To say she was pretty was an understatement. Lena Luthor was runway gorgeous. She wasn't short, but she wasn't tall. Immediately she noticed her stature. The way she carried herself, in a sense of pride and inevitability. She made herself look untouchable, like bullets could bounce of her skin. Emily wondered if she protected herself that way. Much like the way she had seen her on TV. 

  
  


It was comical honestly, the college version of Emily was 20 young with an impenetrable shell. She never got close to anyone, always keeping her guard up. Not until she met the man who turned her life upside down, turning her walls into dust.

  
  


That left Emily to wonder how much of a similarity there was in their stories?

  
  


Had he wooed her, how had he made her feel special, and important at first. How persistent he was, when young Emily had told him time and time again, she wasn't interested. Had Lena also played hard to get, thinking it was pushing him away? Only for him to draw himself closer until she finally gave up. 

  
  


Then she felt the silence strike her, and she looked down to see an outstretched hand. She flicked her eyes upwards to meet the person attached to it. 

  
  


"Nice to meet you Ms-?" Lena began, waiting for her to fill in the blank. 

"Emily Jareau is fine," She said as she shook the outstretched hand. 

"Nice to meet you, Emily, thank you for meeting today, " 

  
  


Emily responded with a respectable nod and smile. They all sat down, and dived straight into business. The lawyers began discussing openly the current state of their case. Catching Emily’s lawyer up on every detail. Recounting the contents of the documents filed over to his firm.

  
  


Lena observed Emily closely from across the table while drowning out the voices. She had long dark hair cut into bangs, probably around her age, or slightly older. She carried herself in a manner of confidence and strength. Much like Lena does herself on a daily basis. Projecting an invisible that spelled out,  _ I am not to be fucked with _ . 

  
  


_ 'So he has a type,' _ she thought,  _ 'he likes to break down the strong ones,'  _ Lena analyzed her, finding any characteristic that pointed to the pattern. But what Lena couldn't figure out is how she was able to do what Lena couldn't. How she stopped herself from being where Lena was now. Lena was reading her like a book, Emily could feel it. 

  
  


"I truly apologize if this seems insensitive in any way, but I really must ask, why do you need me?" Emily interrupted the discussion, "Not that I don't want to help, but what could I say that could possibly make a valuable impact?"

  
  


It was a true and honest question. As soon as she walked into the building she knew that this place and the people in it were heavy on the money. She was sure that Lena and with her lawyers skill set would have no problems putting this case to rest. 

  
  


The room went quiet and nobody moved for a moment. The truth was that yes, the case was strong, but James' behavior could only go so far back. With Lena being the only victim of actual physical acts and his relationship with alcohol. There were only so many things she could say.  _ "Yes, he hit me, but it was usually after he was drinking," _ It could easily be passed off as an addiction. That wouldn't be enough for him to actually get what he deserved. She could also say,  _ "Yes, there was the micromanagement and the social isolation," _ but if it only came from her, it wasn't enough. There needed to be a pattern, something to show that if he did it before, he did it now, if we let him off the hook, he could only do it again. But next time, he will only be harder to catch, because now he will make sure that nobody will catch it. It wouldn't be enough for Lena to feel like she could breathe again. 

  
  


Finally, Lena broke the silence.

  
  


"I know you don't know me very well. Or know me more than what you find when you search up my name. But I can say that without a doubt that if you were anything less than a good or decent person by any standards, you wouldn't have shown up today. I wouldn't drag you back to a time you would rather forget if it wasn't because I needed you. I don't need you to lie, and I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do. All I ask is that you tell your story and do the right thing," 

  
  


Those few words from Lena Luthor reset a gear in Emily's brain. She wasn't a part of the group who thought the woman was a psychotic maniac in disguise like most people did. But she didn't think that with the way life had been treating her that she would speak with such polite respect. In all honesty, she expected to feel pressure, and a sense of coerced, once she stepped into the room. But in the end, who was she to think that? she didn't know Lena Luthor past a google search.

  
  


Her body language, tone, and the slightly desperate emotion floating through her eyes betrayed every negative lingering thought in her mind. All she saw was a woman who was trying to do her best to bring herself to a sense of peace that Emily was lucky enough to escape too. It could easily have been her in that seat, and she would've done anything to get the justice she deserved. And yet Lena Luthor, the woman who could get anything she wanted with a snap of her finger. Was asking her with the absence of any form of domineering in her tone for a simple favor. 

  
  


Who would Emily be to deny her that?

  
  


"So, what is it that you need me to do?" She asked as she drummed the tips of her fingers lightly against the table. 

  
  


Everyone on the opposite side of the table exchanged looks of interest and shock. Somewhat taken aback not by her short hesitance, but her willingness to cooperate. To be involved in a scandal, and to have her name be printed next to that of a Luthor for however long the media decided to remain interested. This opened up a world of exposure for Emily, who had no social status whatsoever.

  
  


"If you do this, people will know your name. They will know you're associated with me, that's not something to disregard. It's completely understandable if you want to walk out now and never hear from us again," Lena said earnestly.

"I understand, but I have no intention of not doing my part. You have my full cooperation," She added immediately, "So again, I ask, what is it that you need me to do?" She asked in all seriousness

  
  


The lawyers exchanged quizzical glances, and the process began. They took notes of everything and anything Emily could recall. Her time with James, with and away from him. From how he went from the charming considerate man they had met into the controlling fear striking bastard. There was only so much time to process the new information in their case. 

  
  


The two other women sat in the hallway as she recalled the events. Avoiding corroboration, there was no room for error. Not when Lena Luthor was involved, and any mention of sharing details to corroborate the testimony of one of her key witnesses. That would not do, not at all.

  
  


Lena shifted on the balls of her feet as she stood in the hallway. Kelly sat on the hard mahogany bench, watching her. All should be well, still, she felt strangled. 

  
  


"Hey, you ok?" Kelly asked, tapping the space next to her, signaling for Lena to sit down.

  
  


Lena only nodded with a hum, trying her best to cover her anxious mannerisms.

  
  


"I'm a therapist, Lena, you're gonna have to be a lot more convincing than that," she joked. 

  
  


Lena let out a soft chuckle and fell into space next to her. She dropped her face into her hands and sighed. 

  
  


She stared at Kelly for a moment, and she quirked an eyebrow in return. "It's nothing, I just- stress," She lied.

"I can only imagine," she said, "But we've done everything there is to do. Now we wait and hope for the best." 

  
  


Hope. It always comes down to that, doesn't it? 

  
  


"Plus, not to brag, but you have a kick-ass support system," Kelly added, nudging Lena playfully with her shoulder. 

"I do, don't I," Lena said with a chuckle.

***

When all was said and done, it was well into the night. Emily had gotten a little worn out, racking her brain for moments in her past that she ultimately tried to drown with alcohol. She thought of everything and anything. Scraping every crevice of her brain for helpful information.

  
  


When it reached half-past nine, she had poured out all the information she had to offer. 

  
  


"You're free to go Ms.Jareau," Cabot announced, "Thank you for your help," 

"mhmm.," she mumbled. She collected her things and stuffed her bag with paperwork haphazardly.

  
  


She almost launched herself out of her door eager to get back to her hotel room. She Stopped midway when she found the two women seated on the bench. 

  
  


"Oh hey,"

"Hi," They said in unison.

"You stayed?" Emily asked. Her words were directed to the both of them, but she was truly interested in Lena's response. 

"We did. I just wanted to give my thanks again," She said, "I really wish I could give you a gift or something, but that wouldn't look good.

"Thank you, you don't have to, but it's appreciated. And no need for thanking me, truly. I did what I hope someone would've done for me. I'm just going to wait for my uber, you both have a good night,"

"You too, stay safe," Kelly said, and they left the building.

  
  


Lena stepped out of the door and stood looking out at the night. 

  
  


She waved goodnight to Kelly and texted Matthew, letting him know she was out. She sat on the front steps, feeling the small gravel and pebbles poke at her thighs. The moon started to rise, and the fading glow of the sun created such a heavenly sight. She tilted her head upward, so she saw nothing but the sky and the stars. 

  
  


She stared, imaging what it would be like to be swallowed by space. To be floating in silence to whatever neighboring galaxy that awaited her. She could be free of the burdens of life and society, her last name, everything. She could just float and count the stars, the many moons of the neighboring planets, and their suns. 

  
  


Lena heard the gravel shift beside her and turn to identify the disturbance. Blonde hair and blue eyes encased her sight. She smiled when she saw Kara's rosy cheeks peeking at her. 

  
  


"Hey," Kara said.

"Hi," 

"Ready to go?" Kara asked 

"Yeah," she whispered back, but Lena didn't budge. She shuffled into Kara's side and leaned her head onto the blonde's shoulder. She sighed contently and closed her eyes for a few seconds. Floating in her blonde haired space on earth.

  
  


Kara said nothing and just placed her head atop Lena's. She was glad to see her in a state of calm, relaxed, drifting. 

  
  


"Alright, let's head home," Lena stood abruptly, dusting herself off. 

  
  


Kara's stomach twinged. She didn't know why, it really shouldn't be that big of a deal. Lena referring to her loft as  _ a home.  _ The way it just slipped out so effortlessly in a way that was almost routine, it made her insides jump. 

  
  


"Lets," Kara said with a smile holding out her arm. 

  
  


Lena intertwined their arms, and they walked down the steps. 

  
  


At that moment, a black SUV pulled up, and Emily stepped out of the double doors. She watched as Lena and Kara walked away arm in arm. Watching as their strides synced together and Lena held Kara closely to her. 

  
  


"Interesting," she whispered to herself, "good to know my gaydar still works," she chuckled. 

  
  


***

  
  


"So, how did it go?" 

"It went better than anticipated," Lena said, as she cut the lasagna into squares.

"Oh come on, you gotta give me more than that," Kara urged 

"She was nice Kara, she offered her help. She seems very sweet and kind," 

"So, she helped you?"

"She did," 

"So did she tell you about her story?" 

"Wow, the reporter in you never sleeps, does it? But no, I cant hear it until the trial, so our stories don't mix," 

"Oooh, well I'm glad it all worked out," She said, swinging her feet off the counter where she was perched.

"Yeah," She said 

  
  


They ate the Lasagna sprawled out on the couch. Lena watched as Kara ate twice as much as she did. That speedy metabolism never failed to shock Lena.

  
  


"Lightbulb," Kara sat up, and her face glowed. 

Lena looked up from the plate in her lap, "Do you say that every time you have an idea?" she laughed.

"Yeah, it's a new thing I wanna try. Anyway, Movie marathon," She looked at Lena with wide eyes, " Today was a good day, and we should end it by doing something fun plus think of it as the childhood you never had," She said excitedly, practically bursting at the seams. 

"If you insist," Lena shrugged, 

"Oh my gosh, really? You're usually a lot more stubborn when it comes to doing fun things," Kara said, suspiciously as she reached for the remote.

"I- wow," Lena picked up a throw pillow and launched it at Kara.

"Meanie," she grumbled as Lena failed at holding in a burst of laughter. 

  
  


They decided to start with the Lilo and stitch movies because Kara absolutely adored them. Somehow through the first one, Lena found herself cuddled up against Kara with her head, laying against her stomach. 

  
  


She listened as Kara laughed at all the silly things stitch did. She pointed out all of her favorite things in the movie and made sure Lena knew why they were her favorite. And she paid attention to every detail. Lena loved every minute of it, she cherished the way that Kara could find happiness in things as small as children's movies. The world was such a shitty place, Lena knew it all too well. Still, Here she was lying under her laughing at a fictional alien creature surfing. 

  
  


And maybe, hypothetically, just maybe, Lena found herself enjoying the movie. But Kara doesn't need to know that. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT !!!
> 
> I hope y'all are doing well :) school is whooping my ass and Im going insane   
> When I tell y'all Im such a shitty proof reader I- its actually so bad oml   
> and im a whole week late....-  
> I apologize for the large amounts of disappointment that u will feel with this chapter 
> 
> im not even finish with the first book much less the second and im already thinking about a third.... n e way


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here we go...  
> We've reached the point y'all...
> 
> many "Fuck yous" in these chapter along with ass kicking references :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen... I know its been two weeks and I apologize don't kill me please😭
> 
> Instagram: @yourwifejazzy for updates 
> 
> COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT!!
> 
> also you guys should comment some things you wanna see in the second part of this story. I really wanna hear ur ideas :) ( which will be focused on the actual supercorp relationship)

When Lena woke up this morning, everything around her felt heavy. The air, the sounds, her thoughts. No alarm blared noise into her eardrums, alerting her of the day ahead. Her stupid, stupid brain, which had not let her get a second of rest knowing the day that awaited her.

  
  


So there she laid, beside Kara, eyes open and fully awake. She knew it would only be so long until her actual alarm woke her up. The soft snores and gentle breaths of the superhero beside her acted as white noise. 

  
  


She thinks back to these last few weeks. Back to the therapy sessions, the nightmares, and the mornings after them. How for almost a split second after she would wake up thinking he was back. That she was once again lying next to him. Analyzing her actions of the day before to determine what his mood would be when he woke up. Hoping and praying that maybe he drank enough to forget. Hoping and praying that today would be better and that they could have a good day.

  
  


But after that second would pass, and she felt Kara shuffle beside her, Kara's arms wrapping around her protectively, and she would feel safe again. she would release the trapped breath. She would catch her breath quietly, trying not to wake her. 

  
  


But after today, she would breathe freely. Right? Oh, The things Lena Luthor would do for her brain to give her an ounce of hope.

  
  


Then, as if on cue, her alarm rang, startling her. She reached over lazily, shutting it off and sighed, a deep, heavy, strangled sigh. She didn't move, and she didn't blink, she just couldn't bring herself to move. Kara shook herself out of sleep and sat up, rubbing her eyes. Reaching for her phone blindly, she frowned when she saw the date. 

  
  


She turned over to Lena, who was still staring emptily at the ceiling. Her face was void of any emotion. Kara listened to her breathing, shaking breaths along with her heart that paced erratically. Today was going to be a hard day. Kara was prepared to meet every challenge by Lena's side.

  
  


The hardest part of the day would be trying to restrain every muscle in her body from obliterating James. But today, all her focus is put into Lena, he was just a passing thought. 

  
  


"Lena?" Still, she didn't move, she didn't respond. Staring straight up into the ceiling, pushing her weight into the mattress. "Lena, hey?" she stroked Lena's shoulder lightly.

  
  


She responded with a small hum but still made no efforts to refocus her attention on the voice speaking to her. 

  
  


So again tried to gather Lena's attention, waving a hand in front of her face. Finally, she blinked, refocused, and turned to look at kara. "Lee, we need to get up," She responded with a hum and a nod. 

  
  


But still, she didn't budge. Her eyes began to well up with tears. She hadn't even gotten out of bed yet, and she was already falling apart. Kara grabbed her hand, rubbing her thumb softly over her knuckles. She looked at Lena, who was trying her hardest to blink back tears. 

  
  


"I know today will be hard and scary, and a bunch of other things. It's ok to feel scared, angry, but you won't be alone. Kelly, Alex, Emily, Dr.Turner will be there.  _ I _ will be there. If you get scared, look at me, if you feel overwhelmed, squeeze my hand, ok?" Lena nodded, "Remember, he can't get you, If he tries, I won't let him," 

  
  


"He can't get me," Lena repeated, taking deep breaths.

  
  


"You did nothing wrong, it's not your fault," Kara whispered. 

  
  


Lena hesitated, she opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Then she looked at Kara, who delicately squeezed her hand, " It's not my fault," Kara smiled back. 

  
  


They moved slowly, as slowly as they could, savoring any calm part of their morning that they could grasp. They showered and ate their breakfast in dismal silence. Occasionally Kara would glance over at Lena, finding her sulking. She would lean over to whisper small affirmations, and phrases of positivity through the stillness of the air. Ending them with loving smiles or the delicate touch of a hand, letting Lena know she was there. 

  
  


Neither of the women dared to turn the tv on, for they knew exactly what they would see. Lena's face would once again be plastered across the screen with whatever photo they chose to represent James. Some invasive, mediocre title about the trial. Some random idiot giving their opinion on what they thought about the situation. Though Lena was sure the public knew nothing more than the connection between her disappearance and his arrest.

  
  


Lena dressed in her navy blue suit. Kara was a bit surprised, to say the least, Lena hadn't worn them in such a long time. Which was unusual considering Kara knew she preferred them. 

  
  


_ "At least I can move my legs instead of wearing a deathtrap. Honestly, Kara, these dresses and skirts are one of the many banes of my existence,"  _ Lena had told her once, "And don't get me started on heels," 

  
  


When Kara had gone to retrieve the clothing late one night after a long night of court preparation that Lena had insisted on. She slipped into the penthouse creeping through the master bedroom to the walk-in closet. She saw the wardrobe was filled with the clothing which she despised. Skirts, dresses, and walls of heels lined her side of the closet. She went to the furthest part of the walk-in closet as instructed and retrieved the small bag of clothing. Finding it placed neatly, so it sat at the bottom of the drawer. Almost like it was hidden.

  
  


_ 'Huh, weird,' _ she thought. 

  
  


After Lena slipped into her clothes, she faced herself in the mirror, staring for a long time. Her face contorted into a concentrated stare. Analyzing herself, looking for something, any fault in the material that would make her change. Kara watched her hands, clenching themselves into fists and realizing them only to return to a fist. It was one of the many movements Lena used to display her anxieties. 

  
  


"You look great Lena," Kara said with a smile as she watched her from the doorway. 

  
  


"Thanks," Lena said. Still, her eyes didn't move to face her. 

  
  


"I thought you loved your suits," Kara said, "If you don't like it, I can go back and get something else,"

  
  


"No, that won't be necessary," Lena sighed, "I like it, I do. It's just that-," She paused, "He hated them, said they were unladylike. Women were to dress like women, and men like men," She whispered.

  
  


"Oh," Kara replied. Of course, he hadn't the things she wore too. 

  
  


"He told me not to wear them anymore. Then we got into an argument one night, so I wore one just to piss him off," Lena continued, "He was furious, over some fucking clothes," Lena let out a chuckle of frustration, "So he took them all into trash bags and threw them out. Then he- well, let's just say, he made sure I knew never to defy him again." She leaned over, gripping the edges of the sink. 

  
  


Kara's body went hot as she gripped her arms. Oh, Rao, the many things she wanted to do to that man. 

  
  


"But I still had this one, and I kept it. A small piece of myself that I had left," She shrugged, " I guess I just feel like I'm breaking another one of his rules. Sorry, it's stupid, I'm wasting time," She said, moving away from the mirror. 

  
  


Kara stopped her before she could slip out of the bathroom, "You know it's ok for you to tell me these things if you want to, right? Don't ever feel like you have to keep it to yourself, or you're burdening me with anything," She looked her in her eyes. Her voice gave sincerity and pure honesty.

  
  


Lena nodded softly. 

  
  


"Alright, let's get going," She smiled.

  
  


And they headed out. 

=======================

The ride to the courthouse was quiet. Matthew played soft jazz music that flowed through the body of the car. Lena was reading and rereading all the documents they had brought with them. Making sure she knew her case like the back of her hand. Kara was sure that if she was asked, Lena could recite each page of those documents by heart. 

  
  


"Preparation is key Kara, without it you're completely blind," Lena had told her the night before. When Kara told her to rest herself after nightly mock trials. Pacing around the living area while Kara asked her a series of questions. Lena was quick, sharp, and smooth with her replies. Lena was prepared to the best of her ability. 

  
  


But it was far from what it would be like when she had to take the stand. The questions would be heavy and would hit her where it hurts. Trying to get her to break, convincing the jury it was her fault. The questions Kara shot at her all those nights were only a sample. The language used was easier for Lena to process, easy for her to respond without choking up at a memory. 

  
  


_ "I can take it, Kara, I need to be ready,"  _ she said when she noticed Kara giving her the lighthearted questions. So she dove, just scratching the surface of the reality. 

  
  


When Lena would falter or hesitate, she saw her visible frustration. Watched as she mentally cursed herself. "Give me the next one, but ask me that one again when I start doing too well," she would tell her, "If it's not good enough, give it to me again," she said as she paced.

  
  


Kara would try to get her to take a break, a nap, eat something, or even get her to sit down. But her stubbornness and determination driven by underlying fear shot her down each time. 

  
  


But when he would be there, while he was watching her. Everyone would be watching her. Waiting, and leaning into her replies. Lena Luthor never broke under pressure. Even in cases where a split-second decision could be the downfall of her business. But she always thought without stagger or hesitance. When threats were coming at her left and right from angry businessmen, She always seemed to calm the roaring sea of pressure. But she couldn't help to think that maybe, just maybe, this would be what finally broke her. 

  
  


He could make her feel weak with just a stare. Tear her confidence down, so she had nothing but her words to hide behind. He took everything from her, stripping her down to her core. Lena needed confidence, something to make her feel strong. 

  
  


She glanced down at her phone, checking the time. They had about 15 minutes to spare.

  
  


“Matthew, please make a quick detour to the convenience store on the corner of 5th and plight,” 

  
  


"Alright, Ms. Luthor," he replied as he flipped on his turn signal. 

  
  


Kara glanced at her questioningly, "I need to get something quick," Lena said. Kara asked no further questions and shrugged with a nod. 

  
  


Once the car pulled up in front of the store, Lena swung her door open, "Wait here, I'll be just a second," She said before slamming the door shut. Kara just sat staring back at the door. She turned to look over at Matthew, who was slight as stunned as Kara.

  
  


"Do you know what's going on?"

  
  


"Not a thing Miss Danvers," He said with a shrug. 

  
  


Lena rushed into the doors of the store, the patrons stopped and stared. Lena Luthor had just reappeared for the first time in weeks at some local convenience store. It was a little surprising to say the least. She ignored the staring faces and rushed over to the beauty section of the store. She scanned the shelves for her item. Her face grew into a smile, face lighting up when her eyes landed on it. She grabbed it quickly, rushing to the cashier.

  
  


The young man behind the counter looked at her and down to her item. One small Maybelline ruby red lipstick. Who would've thought this little convenience store boy would be one of the first to see Lena Luthor come out from hiding, ringing her up for cheap convenience store lipstick. 

  
  


"W- would you like a bag with that m- ma'am?" he asked.

  
  


"No, thank you, I won't be needing a receipt either," she said as he scanned her card. 

  
  


Behind him, a small television displayed a flock of reporters,  _ "Today Lena Luthor is set to appear at the National City courthouse to dispute the charges held against well-known Cat-co employee James Olsen," _ A woman reported. 

  
  


"Y-your all s-set ma'am," The young man said as he handed her back the lipstick.

  
  


She smiled down at the cheap makeup in her hand, "Fuck you, James," she whispered to herself and exited the store. 

  
  


Plopping back down into the seat of the car, the car eyed her suspiciously.

  
  


"Lipstick?" asked the blonde.

  
  


"Yes, lipstick," Lena replied matter-of- factly.

  
  


Kara continued to look at her, confusion spelled out on her face, " I could've gotten one that you had at your place before we left," Kara said, searching for an answer to her unasked question. 

  
  


_ What's with the lipstick? _

  
  


"I have none, well not anymore," Lena said quietly, "Another thing he decided to take into his own hands. Molding me to be what he wanted. Told me it was for sluts, he threw it out, along with other things. It was strictly mascara and blush, nothing more unless he said so. He took everything that made me feel good, confident, strong. So without it, I was naked and exposed. Easy for him to bend me into whatever shape he wanted me to be," She explained, as she applied it with the front-facing camera of her phone, "But today, I'm done, fuck that, fuck him. Fuck him and his rules, his words that tore her down. I'm taking it all back today," She looked over at kara with a small smile showing her strength. Her confidence boosted with the last stroke of her application, "He can't hurt me anymore," She said with strength, coursing through her words. 

  
  


Where this burst of confidence, defiance, strength came from, Kara didn't know. But she couldn't have been more proud and thankful in her life. All those hours of therapy she had pushed Lena to go to. The nights of holding her close in the dark as she wept. Whispering sweet things in her ear. Reminding her of the good that she was, that she would always be. It paid off. Hearing Lena pushing back against him, and reclaiming her power. 

  
  


"There must be a lot of power in that lipstick,"

  
  


“Red lipstick has been used as a power all throughout history associated with feminism,” Lena said brightly. 

  
  


“So it’s like a power symbol?”

  
  


“Yup,”

  
  


“Oh wow, I love it. Not to mention that it suits you well,” Kara said with a smile.

  
  


Lena’s cheeks began to heat up so she ducked her head, “Thanks,”

  
  


===================

  
  


The car slowed in front of the large marble building. The crew of reporters hadn't moved an inch since she last saw them on the television. Lena had forgotten how overwhelming the press could be. Cameras in her face, people yelling her name left and right. It would be so loud she couldn't hear her own thoughts. 

  
  


_ 'We just need to get to the stairs,' _ she thought, _ 'a quick walk through the crowd and up the stairs.' _

  
  


Kara reached out to her like she could read her thoughts, "Remember, squeeze my hand if you get overwhelmed. Look at me if you get scared or you feel stuck, ok?" Lena nodded. 

  
  


"Go get em Miss Luthor," Matthew said with a smile, 

  
  


She chuckled, "Thank you, Matthew,"

  
  


"Alright, you ready?" Kara asked

  
  


Lena drew in a deep breath and released it with a large gust of breath, "Mhmm," she hummed. 

  
  


As soon as she opened her door, and her heels touched the ground, the camera's rose to meet her face. Lena looked out at the assortment of cameras and mics that flew to her face. 

  
  


_ Oh god. _

  
  


Her hand reached out blindly through the air. Looking, searching, for Kara. Her right hand, clutching her bag tightly. And quickly, Kara sped around the front of the Kara, standing by Lena's side at a moment's notice. Reaching out immediately, feeling Lena's fingers slip into her own.

  
  


she squeezed Lena's hand twice, leaning over to whisper, "I'm here," and Lena's shoulders relaxed slightly, and her death-like grip loosened. She looked up over at Kara, mouthing the words,  _ Thank you.  _

  
  


She looked over at the two bodyguards who were obviously failing at doing their job. Simply standing like statues decorating the pavement.

  
  


"Hey, you two, will you get over here and do your job?" Kara yelled over to them. 

  
  


plucking their heads out of the clouds, they raced over clearing the way for the two to walk through. 

  
  


As they walked further into the crowd, Lena's hand squeezed tighter onto Kara's. Still, she kept her head on her shoulder, facing straight up and through the crowd. Ignoring the cameras and the thousands of questions thrown at her. Kara ran her thumb over Lena's knuckles soothingly. 

  
  


They reached the top of the stairs, and Lena practically threw herself through the doors. Leaning against the nearest wall, she drew in a deep breath she had trapped in her lungs. 

  
  


Kara released her hand, bringing it up to Lena's back to rub circles against it, "You alright?" Kara asked, concern laced in her voice. 

  
  


"Yeah, it's just been a while since I had to do that," Lena said between breaths. 

  
  


"You did great," Kara said.

  
  


"Thank you,” Lena said, Kara just nodded, "No, really, for everything I've put you through. A thank you is really not fitting for everything you've done for me," Lena said sincerely, "Dragging me to those therapy sessions, staying with me, putting up with my constant crying and stubbornness. Dealing with me even when I'm difficult. Believing in me, and just being there. Truly Kara, your better friend than I could ever deserve,"

  
  


There were so many things Lena could say, but there was no word in any dictionary of every language to ever exist, to describe the love and gratitude she had for Kara as a whole. Really she wanted to say,  _ "Thank you for not leaving,"  _

  
  


"You deserve all good things, Lena. I'll tell you that every day if I have to until you believe it with your chest. You don't need to thank me, Lena," Kara replied. Lena stared into Kara’s eyes, searching for any sign that she was lying. But she saw nothing, Kara Danvers, Supergirl really cares. 

  
  


"Hey, there you guys are," Cabot said, interrupting their moment, "I hope it wasn't too much out there," 

  
  


"Nothing I'm not used to," Lena replied, "Where's everyone else?" 

  
  


"With their lawyers, going over statements and such," Cabot began ushering the women over to the small meeting room.

  
  


"Is- is he here yet?" Lena blurted.

  
  


Kara paused along with the lawyer. They exchanged worrying glances before she sighed, "Yes, but he's on the other side of the building along with his council. You won't see him until we enter the courtroom," Lena swallowed hard as her throat went slightly parched, nodding. They continue on their path towards their meeting room. Diving straight into business as soon as the door trembled shut.

"So you went over everything, recounting statements and all?" The women nodded in response, "Alright," Cabot rolled up her sleeves, leaning in closer against the table. Her voice went low, with nothing but seriousness, "we don't have much time. So let me say one thing. The only way for the other side to win this is to hit you where it hurts. They will say things, try to accuse you of things. But you just need to believe and know your truth. Alright?"

  
  


"Ok," Lena said 

  
  


A short woman with thick-rimmed glasses entered through the door, "Miss Cabot, they're ready for you," she announced.

  
  


"Ok, thank you," she replied, "Alright, let's go kick some ass ladies," 

  
  


=====================

  
  


The gavel was loud as the judge banged it against the wooden pallet, "Court is in session," The sound reverberating against the high ceiling as the room went quiet," Announcing case number JY3498 Luthor vs. Olsen."

  
  


Walking through the aisles up to the two font tables which sat in front of the judge, she saw him. Standing there, bald head, in a crisp suit hands shackled together. His handcuffs rattled as he was released from them, making Lena flinch. The shiver that moved through her body could be felt when her grip on Kara's hand tightened. 

  
  


The room and air around her were cold and heavy. The eyes that stared through her soul only made it feel worse. Her head ran through every piece of information she had read in the last few days. Repeating the memorized questions and answering them in her head.

  
  


She whipped her head around, staring Kara in the eyes. Her skin flushed paler than she already was. All confidence she had from the moment she'd applied her lipstick drained from her body. She wanted to run, hide back in the meeting room. Get as far away from him as possible.

  
  


Kara read Lena's eyes, though she spoke no words, Kara could feel everything.

  
  


"He can't hurt you, I won't let him," she whispered, "I promise," Lena nodded back as she finally released her talon-like grip on the blonde's hand. Kara shot her a reassuring smile as she shifted into the wooden pews. 

  
  


Lena moved through the aisle up to the table. The screech of the legs of the chair making her cringe. She didn't look at him, but she could feel his glare on her frame. 

  
  


"Calling Lena Luthor to the stand," The plaintiff announced. 

  
  


"You got this," Cabot whispered beside her. Lena released a shaky breath, throwing her a small thankful smile. 

  
  


Lena rose on shaking legs, keeping her head high. She wouldn't let him break her, not here, not again, not now. Every ounce of her dignity that he had stripped from her. Today, she would take it all back. 

  
  


She placed her left hand on the bible leaving her right hand in the air, "Do you, Lena Kieran Luthor, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God?"

  
  


And just then, she turned, looking him dead in the eyes, sending her final  _ fuck you _ , "I do," 

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here are some info about the power of red lipstick:  
> https://www.cnn.com/style/article/red-lipstick-history-beauty/index.html  
> https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/beauty-hair/celebrity-hair-makeup/a33804543/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-red-lip/  
> https://www.teenvogue.com/story/history-of-red-lipstick-and-suffragettes  
> \-------
> 
> Also here are some other links to keep you up to date with current events:  
> https://currentintissues.carrd.co  
> https://issuesintheworld.carrd.co  
> https://endsars.carrd.co


	20. Trial (1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I have no clue if i'm lawyering right so please bare with me. Rip to any lawyers out there bcus idk how y'all do it 
> 
> Next Chapter: Cross examinations  
> Then: final chapter :)  
> lastly: info/message 
> 
> twitter: @yourwifejazzy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really disappointed with Emily's part. I had a really hard time writing it for some reason (and I re wrote it maybe 3 times) and it come out terribly and so so disappointingly short, so i'm sorry for that. hopefully I come up with something better for cross examinations :(
> 
> (COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT)

TW: MENTIONS/DEPICTIONS OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE

_**Lena** _

' _In 1...2 out 3...4, again, in 1...2 out 3...4_ ,' Lena counted her breathing in her head, giving herself something to focus on. 

He was staring at her, hard. Staring straight into her core, searching for the weak spot. Waiting for her to crack, waiting for her to break. An illegitimate smile, a small tweak of muscle that looked like nothing. It was a smile though, Lena knew it, even if nobody else could tell. A small sign of satisfaction that she had even dared to do the things which he hated. The lipstick, the clothes, all of it was amusing to him. 

Had they been anywhere else, behind a wall and closed doors. Her display of blatant defiance to him and his rules would have earned her a shove into the nearest wall. A slap added because of the lipstick. 

"Miss Luthor?" The voice spoke, but Lena heard not a word. Too lost in her head to hear anything but her thoughts. 

She would hide in the bathroom for a while, letting cold drops of water attack her bruised skin. She would let herself silently sob as the taunting voice in her head chastised herself. She would remerge with a smile, clean up whatever broken item left on the ground after the dispute. 

He would pull her in, whisper sweet nothings into her ear. Lies and excuses replaced with words of love and affirmation. The ones that Lena craved and yearned for. She gave into them in them, like a warm blanket surrounded by chilling air. This was her interpretation of love. Thinking of it as a scientific theory. The kind that applied to love, her kind of love, the kind she received all throughout her life. 

But maybe that was her problem, equating love to a simple formula. Because love wasn't supposed to have these rules, right? So what happens to the theory when you take the rules away? Is what you're left with real love?

"Miss Luthor," The voice spoke again.

"Yes?" She responded. 

"Can you recount the event leading up to your Hospitalization in the government-owned building Department of Extra-Normal affairs otherwise known as the DEO?" 

"I had been out with a friend, Kara Danvers, for lunch. Mr. Olsen-," Lena straightened in her chair, " My partner at the time arrived in a frenzy and dragged me away. We arrived home had gotten into a-a disagreement and-,"

"About what Miss Luthor? " She interrupted.

"I neglected to alert him about my whereabouts, and he disapproved of my clothing. I had broken two of his rules," Cabot nodded, letting her continue, " When we arrived home, he was frustrated with me,"

"And what happened next?" She urged 

"He asked me to prepare him a meal and drink, and I did but he wasn't satisfied with it," She winced at her words. 

_ 'Damn it, Lena, stop' _ , she chastised herself. There it was, the menace of what she only felt was her alter ego. The part of her that still wanted to protect him, convince herself he could still be good. She hated it, that part of her that wasn't yet a survivor, but still a victim. The small part of her, though she would never admit it, would go back. 

"What kind of drink Miss Luthor?"

"An alcoholic beverage, but I watered it down,"

"Why?"

"Because, naturally, when he drinks, which is often. It increases his aggression, makes him more violent,"

"And what usually happens then?"

" Usually he drinks after a bad or hard day when he's frustrated, or for any reason at all. So when he's angry before he drinks, he only gets angrier after. And I turn into his punching bag,"

"So, what specifically happened that day?"

" I had disobeyed him not twice but a third time. He told me I had insulted him by insinuating he had unhealthy drinking habits," 

"And these rules, how were they used? What were the consequences for breaking them?"

"He had rules for just about everything, what I wore, down to clothes and makeup. Who I talked to and where I could go, and when. He made my assistant update him with any changes in my schedule, if there was something he didn't like, I wasn't to go through with it. I was only to speak to him with the utmost respect at all times. I was never to embarrass him in public etc," She paused, " He used them to control me, keep in my place," 

"So you were to act as the perfect trophy wife in public and behind closed doors, is that correct?"

"Yes,"

"Now tell us how did you acquire the injuries of-," Cabot returned to the table, reaching for a small stapled packet, " A cut on your lip and eyebrow, along with the other multiple cuts and bruises and the asphyxiation that put you into a comatose state for 5 days?" She listed off Lena's injuries. 

Lena froze for a moment, a second catching her off guard. She hadn't necessarily shared the details of the incident other than those in her immediate circle. 

She reached over to the glass of water sitting in front of her. There was only so much time that it could take for someone to take a sip of water. She steadied her hands, lifting the cup to meet her lips. Setting the cup down, she drew in a deep breath and cleared her throat.

"Mr. Olsen slapped my face, I fell to the floor then-," Kara heard Lena's voice falter, a moment of vulnerability that escaped her, "Then he-," she tried again, her voice raising an octave. Unsteady, unknowing, overwhelmed. Her brain was being stubborn, like always. Lena had been so used to shielding herself from others. Keeping every shortcoming stuffed away in her small boxes. So when it came time to repeat her sorrows, her trauma, to strangers waiting eagerly to drink up her recollection, she started shutting down, going into self-protection mode. Conditioning herself to keep her secrets safe.

"It's alright, take your time?" Cabot asked again 

"He-, "Lena began to panic, trying her best to keep still. She clenched and unclenched her hands behind the podium, trying her best to keep her knees still. Not letting anyone know her mind was in a frenzy. Kara watched Lena's eyes move frantically through the pews. Searching, eagerly for a face in the crowd. The blonde sat up straight. Poking her head through the assortment of faces. 

Pacing her breathing again, _'In 1...2 out 3...4, again, in 1...2 out 3...4,_ '

Lena's eyes landed on the familiar face within the crowd. They stuck to the blonde's face as blue eyes met green, and the rest of the world fell away. The calm within the storm, keeping her centered and grounded. Kara threw a small smile with a tilt of her head, prompting Lena as if to say, "Go ahead, you can do it,"

Lena rubbed her thumb over her knuckles, just as Kara did that morning. She closed her eyes for a moment as the silence of the room drowned her senses. Drawing in a deep breath, she straightened her body. And when she lifted her lids again, green eyes once again met the blue orbs. 

She opened her mouth to speak, staring at Kara, only Kara. Pretending that it was just the two of them, "Mr. Olsen wrapped his hand around my throat, throwing me against the wall, holding me there until I blacked out," 

"Thank you, Miss Luthor, I know that wasn't easy," Cabot offered a soft smile, "Now, you mentioned that Mr.Olsen had a pattern of alcoholism that was linked to his aggressive behavior, is that correct?"

"Yes," She responded.

"Was there ever times when Mr.Olsen would engage in acts of aggression when he wasn't under the influence?"

"Yes," Lena responded.

A roaring bang reverberated throughout the air, "Liar! that is not true," James roared.

Lena flinched at the sound, her nervous system almost causing her to raise her hands in defense. She trembled against the chair, her body going cold. Snapping her eyes tightly, she clenched and unclenched her trembling hands in her lap,' _In 1...2 out 3...4, again, in 1...2 out 3...4_ ,' 

Watching from across the room stood Kara, her eyes flicking over Lena’s body and face as she trembled in her chair, listening to the whispers of her breathing technique. Her heart was racing erratically, filling with fear. Kara itched to run through the aisles, just to hold her. Promise her that everything would be ok. Make sure that everything would be ok. 

"Mr. Alvez, please tell your client to control his outbursts, or he'll be removed from the courtroom," The jury began to murmur amongst themselves as they watched the moment unfold. 

"I apologize on behalf of my client, your honor," he replied, shooting daggers at James, who sat back in his seat, a scowl plastered on his face. 

Kara returned her attention to Lena. Still pacing her breaths and repeating her mantra, "He can't hurt me, he can't hurt me," She mumbled under her breath, "Your ok, he can't get you," Her shaking began to still slowly with each breath. 

"Miss Luthor are you ok to continue?" Judge asked 

Lena didn't respond, still clenching her eyes so tight she saw stars, ' _In 1...2 out 3...4, again, in 1...2 out 3...4,_ ' blocking out the noise, she focused on her breathing. Applying every technique she had learned at her therapy session at that moment. 

The room stood painfully still as the courtroom waited. 

With a final intake of breath, Lena opened her eyes. Scanning the room around her, averting her gaze when her eyes laid upon him. She looked at Kara, who was still standing. Leaning forward, ready to swoop Lena away at any second. Lena felt a little safer, remember Kara was there.

"Miss Luthor?" Mr.Alvez asked.

Lena reached over to the glass of water sitting in front of her. Pacing herself as not to drink it all in one sitting, "Yes, there were moments of aggression that occurred when Mr. Olsen was not under the influence," She repeated, not staggering in her speech.

"And what occurred in those moments, were they any more aggressive?"

"He would do the same things. Hit me, slap me, degrade, and belittle me. The only difference is that he would be sober enough not to fuel it with artificial apologies after. Only leaving me to marinate in the aftermath." Lena replied bluntly.

"Thank you, Miss Luthor," Cabot nodded.

Lena drew in a deep breath, relaxing slightly in her chair. Good, she was doing good.

Right?

\------------------

_**Alex** _

Working as a government agent had its perks when it came to court experience. Alex had been through court proceedings many times for various reasons. Some futile and time-wasting, petty lawsuits about the property that got slightly demolished during the apprehension of aliens. Others were more serious, a mistake made by a rookie that could slander the DEO's name. Some even came after Kara made a mess during fights, so Alex, as director, had to clean up her mess (not her favorite). 

This was a different perspective for Alex. She was used to stopping people from potentially hurting others, but now her words and the way she phrased them could determine the future of another person. It was safe to say that any experience in being calm and collected was at the back of Alex's brain because she was very much anxious and nervous. 

Lena and Alex were friends, not as close and tightly knit like she was with Kara, but they were friends. And to Kara, Lena was family, so to Alex, Lena was also family. And Alex would protect her family, always.

"Director Danvers, you were the agent who attended to Miss Luthor's medical needs, is that correct?" Cabot began. 

"Yes," Alex replied, voice smooth and steady, gathering every ounce of the stillness she had learned and marinated it in her words. 

"And you were also the same person who processed the medical report and executed the documentation, which includes photos of any injuries, and time-stamped monitors of her recovery, correct?" 

"Yes," She said again.

"Can you give me a walkthrough of the events that occurred after Miss Luthor's awakening," 

Alex sat up, straightening in her chair, clearing her throat, " When Le- Miss Luthor, awoke she was in a somewhat frantic state. Immediately she began exhibiting behavior similar to those with chronic apprehension. Her breathing was short paced. She was nervous, anxious, worried that Mr.Olsen didn't know her exact whereabouts," Alex said.

"And would you say this was a normal reaction, was your automatic assumption that Miss Luthor was simply displaying a normal worry that her partner had any concern for her safety and wellbeing and that her disappearance would worry him?" 

"No," She responded flatly. A small scoff trickled through the room. Alex turned to the source, glaring him dead in the eyes. Writing plainly with her irises that he would be a dead man had it not been for her and the super's morals. Supergirl was never to kill unless absolutely necessary, and fortunately for him, his death wouldn't provide any satisfaction in the long run. 

He should be very, very thankful, that unlike him, she loved Kelly enough not to let her sister drop him to his death in a blind rage. 

Her point made clear, making itself known in his reaction, she turned her attention back to the Cabot, " Quite the contrary. I'm no psychologist, so I feel like this is a better question for Dr.Olsen or Dr.Turner, but based on my observation-,"

"Objection," The voice rang through, cutting Alex off, "Like Director Danvers said, your honor, she isn't licensed in any medical practices involving psychology. Her observation is thereby not credible and cannot be put up to scale," He said.

Without missing a beat, Cabot jumped, catching him by the end of his sentence, "Your honor, Director Danvers was not only the person who attended to Miss Luthor's medical needs but is a friend of hers. She would be one of the best to accurately convey the contrasts between Miss Luthor's normal behavior and different unusual behavior." Cabot counteracted swiftly. 

The room sat in silence for a few seconds, awaiting a response from the judge. 

"Overruled, Director Danvers, you may continue, but make sure your information is beneficial to this hearing. Stick to what you know about Miss Luthor, don't derail and input any personal feelings you may have for Mr.Olsen,"

Mr. Alvez fell back into his seat with a huff, glaring holes into Cabots back. This did nothing but satisfy her, fuelling her domineering ego as she looked back with a smirk. 

Alex nodded and continued, " Like I was saying," she began, " Nobody who felt as though their significant other had any worry for them would react the way she did. She spoke out of fear and concern, both for Mr.Olsen and herself. Fear that he would find her and fear of what he would do to her. She immediately attempted to leave our medical bay, saying that she needed to go and apologize, I assume she was referring to Mr. Olsen. She was very insistent and slightly hysterical. It took us, Kara, Kelly, and me, A few moments to finally get her to calm down, " 

"And how did you do that?" Cabot asked.

"Well, my sister, Kara Danvers, had to reassure her that Mr. Olsen wouldn't be coming to find her, promising that he couldn't hurt her and that she was safe," Alex added.

"And she calmed down then?"

"Yes, she got to the point where she was back on the medical bed, and her breathing and heart rate had slowed," "After I was sure that she was calm, I attempted to file medical documentation, the pictures and such,"

Cabot hummed, nodding her head at Alex's response, " You say that you  _ attempted _ to file medical documentation, could you elaborate on that?" Cabot urged.

"Well," Alex began slowly, " I had the other participants, Kara and Miss Olsen, step out of the room. I made an updated copy of her chart and added it to the folder, but when it came time to compose a record of her injuries, taking pictures and the basic procedures of DNA swabs, etc, she became very frantic once again," 

"How so?" Cabot asked.

"Miss Luthor became fearful, not hysterical, mostly reacting out of fear. When it came time to take pictures, she moved away from me and the camera. She began insisting that it wasn't necessary. Eventually, Kara stepped in and helped out, reassuring Miss Luthor,"

"And all went well after?"

"Yes, Miss Luthor complied, and we proceeded," Alex finished.

"Very well, thank you Director,"

\------------------

**_Kelly_ ** ****

_ "It's not your fault," _ Alex, her kind, soft, and sweet girlfriend, whispered in her ear every night, _ "You tried babe, I know you did,"  _ Stroking her hair as she wept into her shoulder. She would let the words wash over her like warm water. Trying so so hard for her girlfriends to believe them. 

But she couldn't help but think, that in a way, she was responsible, right? 

James was her brother after all. She was the one who enrolled him in all those programs year after year. Watched him, monitored him, making sure he was making progress, getting better. She was the one who dragged him off bar stools, sobering him up, making sure he got to class the next day. Drove him to his AA meetings and therapy sessions. All the nights she stayed up making sure she didn't miss a call from whatever bartender gave him his fix that night. All of it was her, and her alone. But despite it all, the effort, the stress, the frustration, it wasn't enough. 

So now she was here, in this cold ass room in front of all these people. Ready to confess, spill every detail about how she tried and tried, everything in the book. She read every article, every pamphlet, spoken to anyone who could help, and still, she had failed. Failed to protect her brother, her friends, her girlfriend. 

But sometimes, when all of Alex's convincing with soothing words would wash over her, allowing her the benefit of the doubt, she wondered, maybe she truly did all there was to do. But you can only do so much, and at some point, that another person needs to step up and take responsibility. And in the end, He pushed her away, and then it was out of her hands. So she could only wait for the inevitable ticking time bomb to blow up and send them into a whirlwind of shit.

"Miss Olsen-," Cabot began. 

"Please, respectfully, please just call me Kelly," She hated how distasteful the name felt, seeping in her ears, reminding her of all that followed it. 

"Alright, Kelly, can you recount the event leading up to your brother, Mr. Olson's alcoholic abuse," 

"Well, um, I'm not sure if I can say it was just one thing. Maybe a series of events and one that led to the tipping point," She began, " The tipping point being one of his failed relationships,"

"And this is when you first started to notice the alcoholic tendencies begin to arise?" Cabot asked.

"Well, yes and no," Kelly cleared her throat, " The first relationship I'm referring to was one of two. His first girlfriend in college had cheated on him, which began his drinking habits. The second one only accelerated them in a way."

Cabot reached behind her to a short stapled pack of papers, flipping over them twice before she spoke, "The relationship between Mr. Olsen and A Miss Emily Jareau?"

"Yes," Kelly responded.

"Can you expand on the details of this relationship?"

"There's only so much I can say from the interactions we had, which were somewhat brief and impersonal. My bro-," Kelly paused, straightening in her chair before she began to speak again," James didn't want me interacting with her very often. He mostly made a point to avoid me when they were together." 

"Why do you think that is?"

"Well, James has never been very adamant about the acceptance of my sexuality. He was never openly contemptuous about it, but still, he pretended that it wasn't a part of my identity at times. When I alerted him about the issues in his first relationship, he weaponized it, saying that I only wanted to destroy it, implying that I was attracted to his girlfriend at the time,"

"And was that true?"

"No, I had no attraction to her. I simply was looking out for my brother," Kelly threw her gaze to her brother before stating, "Like I always have," 

Cabot hummed in response, nodding her head, "And how did you do that, fulfill the role of your brother's protector?" 

"Speaking as a therapist, I can say that after the results of his first relationship, He resorted to becoming more assertive and possessive, looking at it as the source of his problems. He began to instill what's called a male privileged mindset within himself. A sense of entitlement that justifies his abusiveness implying that he's entitled to his partner's obedience. This way he could demand what he wanted from the relationship and could expect no resilience," Kelly explained, " But Miss Jareau was much more unyielding than he had expected. She fought against the rules and expectations he had set in the relationship, which infuriated him, making him even more possessive. This got to the point where he began to rebel against the relationship, and in return, Miss Jareau left," 

"Do you feel like this was a reasonable response?" Cabot pressed 

"Yes, entirely. James had gotten to the point where he couldn't be around anyone without negatively affecting them in drastic ways. If I were, to be honest-" Kelly paused," Had she not left when she did, I would've told her to myself," Kelly admitted honestly, and it was nothing but the absolute truth. 

"And what was the result of Miss Jareau's removal of herself from the relationship?" Cabot asked 

"James began to throw himself back into drinking, avoiding everyone and everything that didn't have anything to do with alcohol. Night after night, I would drag him off barstools, indulging in his antics, to get him through the night. I would sober him up enough to get through the day just to do it all over again. It was a destructive cycle for not only him but for me, so I got him help. I called every therapy recourse in the area. I Got him to enroll in AA meetings and drove him to every single one. I researched all I could to help him outside of all those resources, and I put in the work. Day in and day out, I put in all my effort into making sure he didn't hurt himself or anyone else," Kelly sighed, " I did this for years until he was well out of college. He was doing so well, so I did less hovering, he was a grown man and needed independence so he could slowly learn to manage himself on his own," 

Kelly paused, taking a moment to catch her breath. Rehashing all these memories of what she considered her failures was somewhat overwhelming, "I'm not sure if I let him go too fast or-," she released a shaky breath, trying to collect herself so she could keep this moving, " He slowly pushed me away. He was hired at CatCo and moved further into the city, and he found someone, Miss Luthor. I thought it was good for him at first, getting back into the normalities of the life he had. But I guess it was too much at once, a switch flipped because he fell back into old habits,” 

"And what would you define as the product of these destructive habits?

"Well," Kelly paused, "This, a repeat of the past. But this time, I couldn't stop it from getting worse," 

"Thank you, Kelly," Cabot replied with an earnest smile.

\------------------

_**Emily** _

It was weird seeing him again. He stared at her, much like he did to Lena. His eyes gripped onto every inch of her being. Looking right through her like glass, waiting for her to crack and shatter. 

She thought about this moment a lot. The day their paths would finally cross, and they would meet again. It stressed her out keeping her up at night. The thought of never knowing when and where. At a grocery store, walking down the street, coincidentally stopping at the same red light. What would she say, what would she do? 

But here she was, sitting high and mighty in front of him. Emily couldn't help but laugh at the irony of it all. To think that she felt powerful now, sitting in this chair above him, looking down at him. A parallel to how she felt throughout their whole relationship. 

Owned, controlled, dictated.

"Miss Jereau, can you tell us how long your relationship with Mr.Olsen Lasted?" Cabot asked 

" About a year and a half," 

"What word comes to mind when you think of the time you spent with Mr. Olsen"

"Well um-," Emily paused, sucking in her breath, " Difficult, manipulative, toxic, unhealthy," Emily stopped herself before she could ramble out the many, many adjectives that popped into her brain.

"Can you describe the essence of your relationship and how it progressed to this, as you call it, difficult point?”

"Well," She began, " The early stages of our relationship were great. The honeymoon phase, as most call it was amazing. He was kind, caring, sweet, attentive, just all things good," Emily sighed, "Then he would become- overly attentive if that makes sense?"

"Could you describe it?"

"He would pay attention to certain things that were either minuscule or had no importance. He would watch the times I came back from work, and how I was when I came back. He would analyze me for any difference and blow it out of proportion."

"Could you give the court an example of one of these moments,"

"One day I came home after a busy day. It was a little later than I usually do, but to him, the thirty minutes was alarming. When I came back to the apartment we shared, he was sitting up, waiting for me at the door. He interrogated me on where I was, who I was with. Made conspiracy theories on what I could've been doing. And always, I would reassure him and myself, saying he was just protective, he would go to bed angry, wake up and shower me with apologies like he was a new person,"

"Would you say this plays into your manipulative view of the relationship?"

"Yes," Emily stated, "This happened constantly, in multiple different ways. It got to the point where I would be anxiously watching the clock at work, making sure I got back before he could be concerned. He made me feel like I was putting a strain on the relationship for not giving him live updates about my status. And for some reason, I just grew into it. He played into my weaknesses, making me feel like I was the problem, so I had to change myself to fit his standards. When in reality, his standards were just rules and regulations to keep me in place."

"Much like the rules, Miss Luthor described here in court today?"

"Yeah, the clothes, the check-ins, all of it. He did the same with me, soon enough I wouldn't go shopping without checking to see if he approved of my clothing choices,"

"At any point in your relationship did you try to confront Mr.Olsen about his behavior?" Cabot asked. 

"When I first started noticing the possessiveness, I would suggest that we talk about problems. But in turn, he would just turn into that new person again, the sweet, charming James, the one that stuck me to him. Apologizing, promising to change, or work on himself," Emily scoffed to herself, " I would constantly give him the benefit of the doubt. But he never did change, it was always the same." 

"You did eventually leave the relationship, correct?" Cabot asked 

"Yes, I did," 

"What was the initial circumstance that caused you to remove yourself from the relationship?

"When our relationship became more-," Emily paused, searching for the right words, "Difficult," She settled with, "I mentioned couples therapy, and it only made him more furious. There was a point where I just couldn't handle it anymore. It became too much for me to have to be the bigger person over and over again. I was constantly questioning my self-worth, and it was becoming exhausting. It's like I didn't know anything anymore. So the first time I told him I was leaving, he broke down. He started having an emotional outburst begging me to stay. He made promise after promise, to go to therapy, to work on his problems. I had been so emotionally manipulated by him that I blindly accepted them, not seeing through the lies,”

_ 'He said he was sorry, just be happy with that,' _

_ 'Couples fight, its just a rough patch,' _

_ 'Just do better, its not that hard Emily,' _

_ 'God, why do you have to be so difficult?'  _ Day in and day out, the never-ending train of thought made its way through her mind each night. 

It was torture, the way he could control her, make her exhausted even when he wasn't around. The way she felt so vulnerable and naked like he was sitting up, waiting for her to run back to him, like the times before. It made her sick, each and every time. The Nausea filling sense of weakness drew her back. 

Over time, she realized, there were never really any good days. Only days that weren't filled with the shouting, the slamming of doors, and words of fire, fueled by the intention to hit where it hurt most. Mumbled phrases, nights on the couch. The days where he cast a dry spell of any form of interaction. He wouldn't even look at her, speak to her, acknowledge her presence until she made it known. and on those days, she would cry in the showering, wondering what she did wrong. 

"Miss Jereau?" Cabot called out,

"Yes, I'm sorry," Emily shook out of her stupor.

"One last question, During your relationship, did Mr.Olsen's relationship with alcohol contribute to his controlling behavior?"

"No," She responded, confidently, "At this time, his drinking wasn't a big issue. He wouldn't have more than an occasional beer here and there,"

"So would you say that most or almost all of Mr.Olsen's irrational behavior occurred while he was sober?"

"Yes," Emily replied.

"Thank you, Miss Jereau. That was very helpful, thank you," Cabot finished with a sharp smile.

_**\------------------** _

_**Kara** _

The first night, she didn't sleep. She laid as still as she could in the dark as she gripped Lena close and tight. She felt like maybe if she loosened her grip in the slightest, she would slip away like sand. And Kara just could let that happen. So she held her tight, flush against her chest, listening to the steady heartbeat, a reminder that she was there. And all the while she held Lena, who slept soundly in her arms, she stared openly into the dark abyss.

The truth was, she had the nightmares too. The ones where she was too late, she didn't get to Lena fast enough. She couldn't save her. Ones where Lena screamed at her, tears flooding her eyes and cheeks, " _ Why didn't you see it. Where were you? I needed you Kara, but you didn't come until it was too late, _ " It filled her with agony each and every night. 

She would let Lena scream at her, let her spit out the words of resentment. And it hurt so much to see Lena in pain, to see that she didn't stop it. Kara would fight back, she would just say with a shiver in her words, 'I'm sorry, it's my fault, I know, I'm sorry," And Lena would scream, cry until she couldn't. She was all drained out, with nothing left to give.

Then she would leave, looking back at Kara one last time with such grief, and sorrow until she drifted away. Fading into nothing but a shadow. Kara would leap up and run chase after her begging and pleading, " _ I'm sorry, I know it's not enough but I'm sorry. Don't leave, I know you hate me but just stay, it doesn't have to be with me but please don't go _ ," She would run as fast as her superhuman abilities would let her. Catching up with Lena she would reach out, but it would be too late, she would already have faded into the abyss. 

Then she would wake, jolting out of her sleep. Feeling Lena's soft locks tickle her skin, a shuffle in her side, and a tug on her shirt, pulling her close, she would start to breathe again. Realizing everything was ok, she wasn't too late.

Of course, she never told Lena, because then the CEO would purposefully start avoiding her sleep again making sure the hero got hers. She didn't need to be another thing for her to worry about.

On the nights where they infiltrated her mind, making her writhe under the sheets, she would attempt to sneak off so as not to disturb Lena. But then Lena would shuffle, pull her closer by her shirt, tucking her head into her chest, and Kara would breathe for a second. A reminder that she was here, she wasn't too late.

When Lena caught her glancing at her, all of her, she would remind her, "  _ It wasn't your fault Kara. I don't hate you _ ,  _ I could never hate you _ ," she would whisper. It should be enough for Kara. But honestly, she knew it never would be. She knew she couldn't save everyone, even the people closest to her. But it still hurt worse than anyone could ever attempt to understand, but that was something she had to live with, something beyond her control. 

So this time she had to make it right, because she couldn't live knowing that she couldn't protect the woman she lov-

"Miss Danvers?"

"I'm sorry, what was the question?" Kara asked.

"Can you describe your relationship with the defendant Mr.Olsen?"

"Right, um, I would say that we are co-workers," Kara replied with a twinge of disdain in her voice, "Our relationship didn't expand much outside of work, But he is related to my sister's girlfriend, Kelly Olsen, and was dating my best friend so we did see each other outside of work,"

"So, on occasion, you would interact in a non-professional setting, is that correct?" 

"Yes," Kara replied 

"And on these occasions, Miss Luthor would be accompanied by Mr.Olsen, correct?"

"Yes, there were rarely times where we would get together, and she was ever allowed to come alone,"

"You use the word  _ allowed, _ what do you mean by that," 

"Well, My sister, Alex, Kelly, and I would get together for what we call a girls night, and Lena being my best friend, I invited her. But she would always indirectly decline, saying she would have to follow up with me after asking Mr.Olsen. And it was always, she showed up with him, or she didn't show up at all,"

"And did this strike you as odd behavior coming from Miss Luthor?"

"Yes, Lena, for as long as I have known her, has always been a strong independent woman. If she wanted to do something, it would be her decision and her decision only. The only sway in her choice would be her schedule or other important business. When I directly invited her to other gatherings, without the presence of James, she always ended up showing up with him,"

Cabot hummed in response with a small nod "How would you describe the interactions between Mr.Olsen and Miss Luthor during these events?" 

Kara paused for a moment, thinking back to all the game nights, karaoke at the bar. She would watch Lena, occasionally throwing glances at her, making sure the CEO wasn't uncomfortable or overwhelmed. But she was never the only one watching her. Thinking back, she remembered that with every longing glance she threw at Lena, it was followed by a glance from James. Watching the way Lena spoke to people, how she acted around them. When Lena would become aware of his gaze, she would retract immediately. Abruptly ending any conversation, dialing down her mannerisms until she was still, quiet, and emotionless.

It was scary honestly, knowing what she did now, the way he could diminish Lena and control her with just a look was frightening. "Why didn't I see it?" she whispered to herself, struck with realization. 

"See what, Miss Danvers?" 

"I'm sorry," Kara replied, shaking away the thought, "There were times when he would look at her, and she would abruptly shut down,"

"And you think this behavior was caused by Mr.Olsen?" 

"Yes, us-,"

"Objection," the boisterous voice rang through the room, "foundation issues and this calls for speculation your honor," Mr.Alvez began, "There's no way to know that a small look from my client could change Miss Luthor's behavior it's humorous honestly,"

"Respectfully, Mr.Alvez," Cabot spoke through gritted teeth, "Although I find your negligent eagerness to dismiss my witness intriguingly irritating, I would appreciate it if you could contain your impatient outbursts until my witnesses have finished speaking to make your weak attempts," she said with a chilling smile, "Because then I think you might find the answer to your question,"

Mr. Alvez’s mouth opened agape as he threw a look at the judge who spoke, "Objection overruled, Learn to contain yourself, Mr.Alvez. You may continue, Miss Danvers," Mr. Alvez fell back in his chair with a stern huff.

"As I was saying," Kara began, "Usually, Lena would be somewhat relaxed, and if she wasn't, she did a damn good job pretending to be. She has a lot of experience in public spaces with the many charity events that she attends with people who are much more important than we are. And as her best friend, I can say with the utmost confidence that Lena never behaves that way when she is not around Mr.Olsen. Lena has dealt with many people who, to put it nicely, she does not favor encountering. And yet, for as long as I've known her, she has never simply shut down the way she did because she was uncomfortable in any professional setting and definitely not on a normal outing," Kara stated, “That's not who she is, that's just a result of what he did to her,”

"Thank you, Miss Danvers. Moving on, you were involved with the events leading up to Miss Luthor's hospitalization is that correct,"

"Um, yes, In a way," 

"It says here in the official DEO report filed to the NCPD that It was you who arrived at Miss Luthor's home and found her going on to alert the help of supergirl who quickly ensured her safety by transporting her to the DEO,"

"Right, yes, that's correct," 

"It also says here in the NCPD file that the defendant states that you had an encounter with Mr. Olsen the night of his apprehension. This was also the same day multiple eyewitnesses at the local restaurant can account for a disturbance in the dining area. Can you tell us more about that?"

"Well after I had become somewhat suspicious of Mr.Olsen after some alarming behavior that I had witnessed during my Lunch with Lena earlier that day," 

"For emphasis and clarification, can you please elaborate on the suspicious behavior?"

"Well, Miss Luthor and I had left her office that day to attend a lunch as we do on occasion," Kara began, "And we were interrupted by Mr. Olsen, who arrived at the restaurant in a frenzy searching for Lena. He looked furious and enraged and began pulling Lena by the arm, demanding that she leave with him. Lena tried to resist and evade him, but he was so insistent, yelling at her, and she just looked-," Kara paused for a moment, her voice began to waver slightly, as she attempted to hold back the anger she had with herself.

_ 'Scared, she was scared, Kara. It was right there in front of you, and you didn't see it,'  _ There it was again, the same voice that haunted her, clawing at her thoughts until she submits herself to the fears of what if's and almost. Relentlessly reminding her, without fail, reminding day in and day out, she wasn't fast enough to stop it before it got worse.

She blinked back her wetness in her eyes, regaining her awareness. She could wallow in her defeats after they won, "She looked so scared, like a deer caught in headlights," 

_ 'And you didn't help her, some supergirl you are, you can't even protect your own best friend. No wonder she'll never lov-' _

the blonde drew in a shaky breath, "Lena has been through so much, before James. I've always been there to console her. I've seen the aftermath, beyond what the headlines portray. Although she may falter, because she is human, even though some forget that, She's always gotten up and fought back. Against every misconception, accusation, and her own family. But when I saw Lena, it was she was helpless. He made her helpless," She added.

"Thank you, Miss Danvers," Cabot said with an understanding smile, "That Will be all."

\------------------

"That concludes the plaintiffs testimony's for this court hearing 

We will begin the Defenses cross examinations after a short recess."

*Law and order gavel bang sound*

**[Twitter: @yourwifejazzy](https://twitter.com/yourwifejazzy?s=20) **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to go back and read some of my older chapters to write this and I just have to say I am so sorry for making y'all read that atrocity
> 
> TWITTER:@yourwifejazzy


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